I think the entire point of the glass ceiling analogy is that it is see-through. When you start on a low rung you can see your career path potentially rising to the very top and you are told with hard work this is the case but in reality some unspoken and unseen filter the company has will not let you progress above a certain level. If the ceiling can not be seen through it is just a position that is openly constrained and loses all the nuance of the modern world telling everyone they can be anything when they really can’t.