What Glass Ceiling? Patricia Julianne Evans (nee Morris) a memoir

What Glass Ceiling? tells the story of one of the earliest women to work in accounting in Australia.
Growing up in an era when women were deemed inferior and unsuited for a professional career, Patricia Morris/Evans shows how obstacles became challenges and stepping stones; how she challenged fixed and discriminatory ideologies, sometimes involving humorous, or thought-provoking approaches. Patricia's memories of life commence in childhood with how her determination and independence developed, to gaining her certification as a Federal Accountant in 1948 and entering the male-dominated executive world. In 1949 21-year-old Patricia Morris became the first female accountant employed by Bitumen and Oil Refineries (Australia) Limited (Boral). In 1956 married and a mother, Patricia achieved certification as a Chartered Secretary at a time when lifting of the Australian Marriage Bar to married women working in many areas of employment was still a decade away. In 1968, only two years after the Marriage Bar was lifted Patricia secured the first of many family-friendly workplace inclusions in her employment contracts. Her success throughout life influenced other women to do likewise. Patricia talks about her dual role of family and career with professional and social expectations through each decade interweaving her story. She explains how she mentored others, encouraging them to step out of society's expectations of women, and the disadvantaged whatever her or his perceived handicap. Patricia discusses her extensive voluntary work with a diverse range of organisations, whether teaching bookkeeping via correspondence for an 'unwed mothers' home in the late 1950s early 1960, maintaining the books for a group fighting for fair conditions for its workers, or as treasurer and fundraiser for community-based organisations.
Patricia Evans/Morris was profiled by Boral for their 70th anniversary in 2016. She was accepted, in 2017, by the National Pioneer Women's Hall of Fame; and in 2018, also included in the National Pioneer Women's 'Herstory' Archive, highlighting her achievements as an inspirational Australian woman in the field of accounting. Patricia was guest speaker in 2021 for Boral's Women's Leadership group, and recognised by Boral for 2021 International Women's Day.
Patricia's memoir is centred on the accounting aspect throughout her life, and is expanded through research of Sydney from the 1930s onwards, then Canberra from 1976 to the present day. What Glass Ceiling? is a resource for women's studies & leadership, Australian social history, accounting history, as well as for anyone interested in memoir and biography.

Dettagli