Cambridge English Dictionary has recently added a new word: Singlism, defined as “unfair treatment of single individuals.” About a decade ago, social psychologist Bella DePaulo coined this term, and while it is not yet as widely used in public discourse as other “isms” such as racism and sexism, awareness of the discrimination faced by single individuals has certainly increased on a global level. Recent years have seen DePaulo’s claims of unfair treatment towards single individuals confirmed by new university research, showing that single adults have lower levels of well-being compared to married adults, which can be attributed to discriminatory behavior towards single individuals.

With the increasing number of single individuals in the world, whether among those who are not married or those who are divorced and face various forms of discrimination, prejudices, and small attacks, single women experience a heavier burden and more damage. Whether a woman chooses to be single or is single due to certain circumstances, she faces different levels of social, economic, or occupational discrimination around the world. In many countries, a woman’s life, even if she is successful in some social and economic aspects, is perceived as meaningless and empty due to backward and baseless beliefs.

The important report “Families in a Changing World” published by the United Nations Women’s Commission in the summer of 2019, clearly demonstrates that marriage is declining and single life is on the rise globally, as shown by statistics. In this report, the United Nations presents statistics on the increasing percentage of women who reach their late forties and are still unmarried, as well as the rising ratio of individuals who have divorced or separated in their late forties. Global averages and separate statistics for eight regions of the world are reported.

In the world, 4.3% of women remain unmarried until their late forties. The differences are significant based on geography. In Australia and New Zealand, one out of every seven women in their late forties has never been married. This statistic is true for only one out of every hundred women in Central and South Asia. Considering the global average of 4.3%, the differences at a global level are shown in the following list:

Australia and New Zealand: 14.1 percent.

Latin America and the Caribbean: 13.4%

Europe and North America: 10.8%

South Africa: 6.1%

North Africa and West Asia: 4.8.

Oceania (excluding Australia and New Zealand): 3.7%

East and Southeast Asia: 2.5 percent.

Central and South Asia: 1.1 percent.

In every eight regions, the percentage of women who have never been married has increased in the two decades between 1990 and 2010.

The “PEW” Research Center estimates that by the time individuals from Generation X, Millennials, and Generation Z reach the age of fifty in the United States, approximately twenty-five percent of them will have remained single for their entire lives. (2) Having a group of individuals over the age of fifty, where one out of every four has never been married, will drastically change the social, political, and economic landscape in ways that we cannot fully imagine yet.

The level of discrimination experienced by single women is systematic, structural, and institutionalized in the patriarchal system and is reflected in laws, policies, procedures, and customs. Examining these discriminations in countries where democracy and research can be conducted without the limitations of authoritarian governments can clearly demonstrate the gap in laws between single and married individuals. For example, in the United States, the analysis by Lisa Arnold and Christina Campbell published in The Atlantic shows that a single person pays much more in expenses such as healthcare, taxes, housing, and other similar costs over the course of their life compared to married individuals. (3) These inequalities are partially caused by policies that implicitly and sometimes explicitly favor married individuals over single individuals. Do Americans think these institutionalized discriminations are fair or unfair? Findings from a study of a thousand people show that public opinion is almost equally divided (4); therefore, women not only experience gender and sexual discrimination, but single women also carry an additional burden that places them in a

In many countries, laws are in favor of married individuals. In the market, there are more suitable health insurance options, better job facilities and advancements, family leave for taking care of spouse and children (single individuals cannot take leave for family members, siblings or brothers), as well as housing facilities for renting and obtaining housing loans and other benefits, all of which are in favor of married individuals.

In such texts, human rights and freedoms of single women, especially in Western Asian (Middle Eastern) countries, South and Central Asia, and North Africa, are significantly violated. August 4th is Single Working Women’s Day; a day designated to recognize the important role of single working women in societies. Stereotypes and clichés associated with single working women must be broken as it is a formality and a structural process of gender and sexual inequalities.

Single women in Iran.

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In Iran, women are not treated equally and do not have equal rights in various areas of the law, despite making up half of the population. Single women, in particular, face stronger discrimination in terms of employment and housing.

Iran’s laws and job market are organized based on gender and women’s social status. Iranian sociologist and researcher Simin Kazemi recently wrote in her articles under the title “Job Market and Control of Women’s Marital Status” that “discrimination based on marital status is practiced in the employment of women in both public and private sectors. While marriage is considered a point of credit in the public sector, especially after the passage of the Youth Population Law, in the private sector, being single has become a crucial condition for employment. In the public sector, women are encouraged to have children, while in the private sector, working women face the risk of being fired if they become pregnant or give birth. This dual job market controls women’s personal lives and choices in a contradictory manner. The private sector sends the message to women that they can only have one between work and personal life, while the public sector says that if you don’t have a husband, you have no chance of getting a job

According to reports reflected in Iranian media, cases of sexual and gender-based harassment in the private sector, where there are more job opportunities for single women, are very high. In the framework of Iranian laws, there is no clear definition of harassment and abuse of women in the workplace, and there is no accountability for individuals whose rights have been violated. In the “Protection, Dignity, and Security of Women” bill, the issue of sexual harassment of women in the workplace is not explicitly mentioned, and there is no mention of women’s rights in the workplace, especially sexual harassment, in any of its articles.

It should be noted that the gender gap in employment for women and educated women in Iran is approximately fifty percent. Single women, in addition to the limited employment opportunities for all women, suffer from further restrictions on their rights.

Along with job restrictions, one of the most challenging problems for single women in Iran is obtaining housing. Finding suitable housing is very difficult due to traditional and backward mindsets, as well as financial and social limitations. In Iran, like in America and other countries, the quality and economic status of women often declines after divorce. However, in Iran, due to cultural and gender biases, single and divorced women face heavy social pressures.

Single working mothers in Iran, like other countries, are more inclined to choose housing that is close to their workplace due to financial constraints and the lack of free or affordable childcare centers.

For women in Iran, safety – both in private and public spaces – is a major concern. Various considerations must be taken into account when obtaining housing in order to ensure mental peace and security. The lives of single women, at any age, are constantly under the scrutiny of a male-dominated society with anti-women laws and dominant discourse, where women are only defined by their roles as mothers and wives. Single women are less encouraged to socialize with married friends. The fear of being stigmatized and facing backward attitudes has always cast a dark cloud over the lives of single women, and this has been reflected in the oral history of single and working women who, in the 1980s and 1990s, have repeatedly faced these challenges.

Such closed social and economic space violates countless rights of citizenship and human rights of women, especially single women, which also includes divorced and single mothers. The knot of this issue can only be untied through deep and structural changes. Let us break the ceiling and create a new plan.

Notes:
1- Divorce, loneliness, is on the rise all over the world, singles are increasing.

Today’s Psychology.

August 19, 2019.

2- The same…

3 – Arnold, Lisa, and Campbell, Christina, the high cost of being single in America.

Atlantic.

January 14, 2013.

4- Orat, Tyler, do single people face discrimination? Many say yes.

YouGov Research Institute.

February 8, 2022.

5- Kazemi, Simin, job market and control of women’s marital status.

“Shargh Newspaper.”

“4th of Mordad, 1401.”