LE
PLAFOND DE VERRE
THE GLASS CEILING |
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Director:
Yamina Benguigui
Writer:
Yamina Benguigui
Running time: 52’
Production: France 2004
Rating: Not Rated
Gauge: DVD (color)
Genre: Documentary
Distributor:
ArtMattan Films
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“Yamina
Benguigui asks important, basic questions: in a system
led by cooptation, what can diplomas and universities
do for children of first generation migrants, working
class or unemployed, who have been raised in the ghetto?
What remains of republican meritocracy when the doors
of employers are open first and foremost to graduates
from business schools with unaffordable tuitions?”
Isabelle Regnier, Le Monde. |
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“The
Glass Ceiling” is an American sociological expression
referring to the invisible, impalpable barrier that prevents
women from reaching the same level as men in their careers.
Using this metaphor, Yamina Benguigui examines the integration
of immigrants in the workplace. For her, the comparison between
immigrants and women is relevant because they face the same
challenges: the issue is not necessarily about finding work,
but about being hired for positions of responsibility that
correspond to their educational backgrounds. The film provides
deeply moving testimonies of qualified students who, because
of their obviously foreign last names, were not called back
for job interviews. Some chose to fight for jobs for which
they are qualified, others gave up and accepted positions
with less or no responsibilities. Yamina Benguigui also interviews
experts who discuss the reasons behind discrimination, which
include France’s colonial past as well as deeply entrenched
corporate practices, and the difficulty that individuals of
foreign origins face.
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| PHOTO ArtMattan
Films |
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