Source 5: MSPB: Glass Ceiling for Female Federal Employees "Fractured," Not "Shattered"

i. Origin:
Tully, Matthew. "MSPB: Glass Ceiling for Female Federal Employees "Fractured," Not "Shattered"" FedSmith.com. 20 June 2011. Web. 25 Apr. 2012. <http://www.fedsmith.com/article/2955/mspb-glass-ceiling-female-federal-employees.html>.

ii. Summary:
This is a news article covering a report issued by the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board in 2011. The report focuses on women representation advancements in federal employment in the past two decades. Tully points out that while advancements have occurred, they have not been sufficient. Women held 30% of professional and 40% of administrative positions in 1991. In 2011, they overall held 44% of federal occupations. The pay percentage compared to men has increased from 83 to 93 in the same time period. This means that in most jobs, female salaries were still lower than those of men, although this is not solely the result of discrimination. Women occupied 30% of senior executive positions, and while they gained jobs as lawyers and physicians, less progress was made in the engineering and law enforcement divisions. Tully states that advancement and reduction of discrimination will occur at a slower rate, since the remaining negative trends are "deeply entrenched" in society.

iii. Assessment:
The source seems credible, despite being relayed in a condensed form by Matthew Tully. While in support of female equality, he does not offer many opinions on the subject besides an extension of the MSPB report. The MSPB itself, seeming to have had ample time over twenty years to collect solid evidence, most likely is accurate in its findings. Its purpose is to judge discrimination and analyze the systems, and thus is suited to the job of publishing the report. From the report, data of the national trends are described within the separate federal divisions. However, more specific details are not covered in Tully's summary that simplifies the report.While this gives a general picture of the employment situation, if one were to research the federal employment system itself, the report would be the better source.

iv. Analysis:
The source is beneficial for showing the current status of women and the progress that they have made in the federal employment field. While no specific examples are supplied of leaders in the movement, it is stated that women have advanced by gaining an almost equal gender and pay balance overall. However, there is still work to be done, but since the progress is unlikely to stop, and since more female lawyers increases the support for women's rights in court cases, the successes are probably going to continue.