Stunning portraits show what women at work look like around the world

Andres Stapff/Reuters

Ana Maria del Verdun Suarez, 27, is a police officer in Montevideo City, Uruguay.

About 47% of all women participate in the world of work.

They take up careers as teachers, coaches, farmers, priests, soldiers, and beyond. These 42 stunning portraits from Reuters show women at work around the world.

Shinto priest Tomoe Ichino, 40, performs rituals of the indigenous faith of the Japanese people in Tokyo, Japan. She wears a pink robe because it makes her feel confident.

“In general, people think being a Shinto priest is a man’s profession. If you’re a woman, they think you’re a shrine maiden, or a supplementary priestess,” Ichino said. “People don’t know women Shinto priests exist, so they think we can’t perform rituals. Once, after I finished performing jiichinsai (a ground-breaking rtitual), I was asked, ‘So, when is the priest coming?'”

Cristina Alvarez, 29, says she doesn’t face inequality as a butcher in Mexico City, Mexico.

“I’ve never felt any gender inequality,” Alvarez told Reuters. “I believe women can do the same jobs as men and that there should be no discrimination.”

Elizabeth Mamani, 36, is a reporter working at Radio Union in Bolivia’s national congress building in La Paz, Bolivia. She is sometimes barred from events because of her gender.

“When I started in this job, I did feel discrimination (from officials who controlled the access of members of the press to events). To counter discrimination in this profession, we as women, must excel, we must prepare ourselves in every field,” Mamani told Reuters.

Claudia Concha Parraguez, 45, teaches the art of pole dancing in Santiago, Chile.

“Some students with low self-esteem smile more and feel beautiful after training. But because of the poor mentality of their husbands, who do not see this activity as a sport and associate it with something sexual, they stop attending classes,” Parraguez said.

Yolaina Chavez Talavera, 31, breaks down stereotypes as a firefighter in Managua, Nicaragua.

“In my early days as a female firefighter, men — my team mates — thought that I would not last long in the organization due to the hard training. However, in practice I showed them that I am able to take on tasks at the same level as men. I think women must fight to break through in all areas, in the midst of the machismo that still persists in Nicaragua,” Talavera said.

Rosa Amelia Mejia Reyes, 35, sells newspapers on the streets of San Salvador, El Salvador. Her family doesn’t approve, but Reyes is able to support her children because of the job.

“As a woman I have suffered many things, [including] physical abuse from many people. I have suffered discrimination for selling on the street, even from my family,” Reyes said. “But in spite of everything, as a woman and as a single mother I have raised my children.”

Sarah Hunter, 31, captains the British women’s national rugby team. She’s also a development officer of the Rugby Football Union, the sport’s governing body in Britain.

“I think that I’ve been very fortunate in the career that I’ve had and in the jobs that I’ve had, that I’ve been seen for the person that I am and not for the gender that I am,” Hunter said.

Aimee Pompa Bolivar, 43, works as one of many female librarians in Havana, Cuba.

“I don’t see gender gaps at work. Here, all librarians are women,” Bolivar told Reuters.

Yanis Reina, 30, fills tanks as a gas station attendant in Caracas, Venezuela. She says her clients are like family because they often chat while the tank is being filled.

“No doubt this is a job initially intended for men, because you have to be standing on the street [during] your shift, it is dirty, greasy, and there is always a strong gasoline smell,” Reina said.

“But I adore my work. … With the difficult situation that we have in Venezuela, having a job that covers your expenses is almost a luxury, but beyond that, I’m very proud of my job. I believe that now we, the women, have to be the warriors,” she told Reuters.

Lina Maria da Silva, 62, a babysitter, takes care of children out of her home in the Cantagalo slum in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She says she has never suffered mistreatment.

“I have always felt a lot of affection from the families I have worked with,” Silva said.

Rocio Larranaga, 53, a surfer, teaches the sport in Lima, Peru. She says she is the first woman to represent her country in national and international surf competitions since 1977.

“Lots of women surf and they are very good at it. I hope that in the future women have the same quota as men in professional competitions,” Larranaga told Reuters.

Rosalina Dallago, 52, a former model, owns three shoeshine shops in Rome, Italy. Some of her most loyal customers are lawmakers from the House of Parliament.

“My customers see me as a professional before they see me as a woman,” Dallago told Reuters.

Jauna Diaz, 43, keeps the streets of Mexico City, Mexico, clean as a street sweeper.

“In my previous job my boss gave preference to male colleagues and women always were paid later. That’s why I changed jobs,” Diaz said. “To tackle gender inequality I think there needs to be more communication and information about women’s rights in the work place.”

Tara McCannel, 44, is an associate professor of ophthalmology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles.

“Women are held to a higher standard in knowledge, in abilities, in how the clinical practices go, in appearance,” McCannel said. “Women just can’t be themselves or just think, ‘Oh, I’m just going to do my work,’ and focus on the job. There are these other things that need to be considered because it’s not completely equal, even though things are getting better.”

Maxine Mallett, 52, runs a primary school in south London, Britain.

“The most stressful time of my career was when I had children. Women who return to work after having a child are sometimes treated with suspicion, as if they now lack commitment to the school when it is quite the opposite,” she said. “We need to remove barriers and support all. Having a fulfilling career should not have to be a battle that you have to constantly fight.”

Raquel Gomez Delgado, 43, is a marine fishing inspector in Huelva, Spain.

“In my opinion the only way to end gender inequality is through education in schools and bringing us examples of equality [in the media],” Delgado said.

Mado, 34, lights up the Sao Paulo, Brazil, cityscape as a street artist.

“Once a company did not want to hire me to paint a mural because they said that women could not carry the work material (such as paint boxes and ladders),” Mado told Reuters. “I believe that things will only get better for all of us if men treat women equally.”

Ana Maria Garcia, 58, whips up meals for primary school students in Ronda, Spain.

“Women in some professions are protected. For example, in my workplace, the men help women to move the heavy and big pots with food,” Garcia said. “I think that gender inequality is more in men than in women in my workplace. I think we’re creating lazy people.”

Paloma Granero, 38, shares her passion for skydiving as an instructor in Madrid, Spain.

“Men don’t have to prove themselves like we do. We are tested every day,” Granero said. “The instruction jobs still go mostly to men, whereas the administrative jobs go mostly to women.”

Gabriela Santos, 26, drives horse-drawn carriages for tourists in Lisbon, Portugal.

“In my work it is better to be a woman than a man. Women have more sensitivity with horses. That is why employers prefer to hire women,” Santos told Reuters.

Valerie Perron, 53, harvests shellfish as an oyster farmer in Andernos, France.

“It must not be forgotten that it is women — moms — who raise the boys. It is therefore up to us to change the mentalities by raising the boys at their youngest age, in a spirit of parity and equality with the woman,” Perron told Reuters. “We must change the mentalities of early childhood education. A boy can play with dolls and a little girl with small cars.”

Luisana Quero Duran, 32, treats animals as a veterinarian in Caracas, Venezuela.

“The gender inequality that I’m aware of seems to me to be more on the part of the clients. To a certain extent, I am fortunate, having a university degree favors me a lot,” Duran said.

Emilie Jeannin, 37, breeds cows on a farm in Beurizot, France.

“Being a breeder is seen as a man’s job. … Once, I could not help laughing when an agricultural advisor asked me where the boss was, when I was standing right in front of him. I can assure you that the meeting got very quickly cut short!” Jeannin told Reuters.

Merylee, 26, protects the peace as a soldier in Nice, France.

“The parity in the Army already exists — it is the uniform that takes precedence over gender,” Merylee told Reuters.

Cilene Connolly, 32, says women especially are surprised to find a female mailman at their door in Coventry, Britain.

“Fortunately, I haven’t been faced with gender inequalities in my role as a postwoman,” Connolly said. “I’ve had a great response from my customers for being a female delivering their post, women in particular are always pleasantly surprised to see a female face.”

Doris Leuthard, 54, is president of the Swiss Confederation, the country’s seven-member governing body. She says she still sees gender inequality occur in the workplace.

“Transparency helps, discussions about salaries are important. In upper management and leading positions in politics, we [women] still seem to be the minority,” Leuthard said.

Sandra Mifsud, 43, runs a dance studio in Mosta, Malta.

“In the world of professional dance, I’ve read about and I know of many more established male choreographers than female choreographers,” Mifsud said.

Aneta Lukasiewicz, 33, makes over clients’ tresses as a hairdresser in Warsaw, Poland.

“There are more women hairdressers then men in Poland. But I think the number of male hairdressers is growing. From my experience, women clients even prefer to have their hair cut by men, sometimes the reason is curiosity, but also it’s a fashion,” Lukasiewicz said.

Ivana, 32, builds, grows, and manages online communities in Belgrade, Serbia.

“Mainly you can see these [gender] gaps in state companies, which are relics of socialism. It is that standard belief where women are ‘the best’ at being secretaries,” Ivana said.

Lejla Selimovic, 34, restores furniture at her workshop in Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

“In my country, this is an unusual profession for a woman, but so far I have not met anyone seeing it in a negative context. People are often surprised, but essentially only interested in a job well done,” she said.

Julia Argunova, 36, is a mountaineering instructor in the Tien Shan mountains near Almaty, Kazakhstan. Her clients trust her with their safety.

“Physical strength benefits male colleagues in some situations on harder routes. But women are more concentrated and meticulous,” she said. “In general, women are better at teaching.”

Ana Maria del Verdun Suarez, 27, is a police officer in Montevideo City, Uruguay.

“More women should be able to have jobs that traditionally were considered only for men. I believe that discrimination comes sometimes from all of us, it comes from the inside. There are already many professions that were exclusively male and are now performed by women,” Suarez said.

Dr Catherine Reynolds, 37, says she’s seen the gender gap close slowly in her work as a biological sciences researcher at Imperial College in London, Britain.

“Women are very well represented at junior levels in biological sciences research. At a senior level, it is still true that there are fewer female professors in science, but the gap is slowly closing,” Reynolds told Reuters. “More policies that promote flexible working and that support staff in taking career breaks are an essential way in which it is possible for employees, especially those with young families, to realize their full potential in the workplace.”

Serpil Cigdem, 44, drives train cars in Istanbul, Turkey. She was almost passed over for a similar job at the start of her career because of her gender.

“When I applied for a job 23 years ago as an engine driver, I was told that it is a profession for men. I knew that during the written examination, even if I got the same results with a male candidate, he would have been chosen,” Cigdem said.”That’s why I worked hard to pass the exam with a very good result ahead of the male candidates. In my opinion, gender inequality starts in our minds, saying it’s a ‘male profession’ or it’s a ‘men job.'”

Jeung Un, 27, captures real-life events as a freelance photographer, even though she says most news outlets prefer hiring male photographers over their female colleagues.

“I feel strongly about gender inequality. When I cover violent scenes, sometimes I am harassed and hear sexually biased remarks,” Un told Reuters.

Januka Shrestha, 25, drives a passenger rickshaw in Kathmandu, Nepal.

“There is no difference in a vehicle driven by a woman and man. While driving on the road, people sometimes try to dominate a vehicle, especially when they see a woman driving it. People have even used foul language toward me,” Shrestha told Reuters. “When this happens I keep quiet and work even harder to prove that we are as capable as men.”

Phung Thi Hai, 54, works at a brick factory outside Hanoi, Vietnam. She moves 3,000 bricks a day to the kiln, as do the other 24 women under the factory’s employment.

“How unfair that a 54-year-old woman like me has to work and take care of the whole family. With the same work, male laborers can get a better income. Not only me, all women in the village work very hard with no education, no insurance and no future,” Hai told Reuters.

Mehwish Ekhlaque, 26, is a professional bike rider and trainer in Karachi, Pakistan.

“When I planned a Pakistan Bike Tour, many of my male colleagues gave me a piece of advice not to do it as it’s neither safe nor easy for a woman. But I did it,” Ekhlaque said.

Liz Azoulay, 26, loads and unloads cargo at a port in Ashdod, Israel. She is the first woman to take this kind of job at the port where she is employed.

“In most of my professional life, I did not face any inequality. In the port of Ashdod, we are equal on the docks,” Azoulay told Reuters.

Laila Sterk, 22, is a female fighter with the Syrian Democratic Forces in Hasaka, Syria.

“Before becoming a fighter, I was suffering from inequality in society. But after joining the Syrian Democratic Forces, I didn’t encounter that anymore,” Sterk said. “This is due to the fact that when men want to join the SDF they attend educational courses about women fighting alongside them. Therefore the woman fighter leads the military campaigns just like any man.”

Christine Akoth, 38, makes art using metals and paint in Nairobi, Kenya.

“I have experienced gender bias at my work where sometimes I’m denied contracts because of who I am and maybe my marital status,” Akoth told Reuters.

Khawla Sheikh, 54, a certified plumber and trainer, gives plumbing courses for women out of her basement in Amman, Jordan.

“Housewives are more comfortable to have a woman plumber in their house in the absence of their husbands,” Sheikh said. “To tackle gender inequality, I think that all operating sectors must provide equal opportunities for men and women in all fields and each woman must believe in her capabilities and skills that she has in order to convince the others.”

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