Today, women are a part of business life due to various reasons such as economic ones. Female employees experience some obstacles while climbing the career ladder throughout their business life.

Aim

The aim of this study is to identify the career obstacles faced by female employees during their promotion process to higher level positions in hotel businesses in Sakarya province.

Method: Qualitative research method was used in this research. The sample of the research is 126 female employees in 3, 4, and 5-star hotels operating in Sakarya province. Data were collected from female employees using the interview technique. The data collected from the sample group were transferred to the SPSS database, and the frequency of each career obstacle was calculated.

Findings

The results of the data analyses showed that the dual role approach, glass escalator, and bamboo curtain obstacles were the highest career obstacles for women working in hotel businesses, while they are moving to upper level positions.

Originality

This study is the first study conducted by interviewing female employees in hotel businesses by utilizing ten career barriers. Female employees and undergraduate and graduate students can benefit from the results of this study.