As the world moves head-long into science, an issue that has been a topic of discussion is the gender imbalance in the sciences between men and women. It stands to reason that if the modern era is dominated by science and technology, then it’s vital to have women represent a significant percentage in all aspects of the public and private sectors.
A few weeks ago, I came across the article in The New York Times titled “Gender in the World of Science: Is inequality holding back innovation in STEM?” Women have been entering the field of science. But, it wasn’t happening to the degree to ensure gender equality.
While the proportion of women in science has been growing in past decades, progress has been happening at a snail’s pace, making the gender gap disparities in STEM as real as ever, with women still facing obstacles in accessing appropriate education programs, getting funding for new research or finding career growth opportunities. The figures speak for themselves and, interestingly, the gender gap grows with the level of seniority — if 49 percent of high school students are girls, less than 30 percent of senior researchers are women, while in the E.U. only 11 percent of senior academic roles in science are held by women. Ultimately, to date, just 3 percent of Nobel Prizes in science have been awarded to women.
Women in the Workplace
In my companies, women represent more than half of the senior positions, and I’ve heard their discussions about women having to work twice as hard to a man in other companies where they have worked to achieve success. I’m not sure that men, particularly older generations understand that idea. Because of the challenges faced merely by their gender, women have to do their jobs and overcome biases that exist, particularly where men are heavily represented.
For instance, women are still judged on how they appear, which is never an issue for men. Generally, women remain the ones who are the primary caregivers to their children and also aging parents, as well as matters related to the day-to-day functioning of their homes. In the business world, more women than men believe there are too few women in leadership positions, according to a published piece by Pew Research Center entitled “Women in Leadership 2018:”
About seven-in-ten women say there are too few women in high political offices and in top executive business positions; about half of men say the same. And women are far more likely than men to see structural barriers and uneven expectations holding women back from these positions. About seven-in-ten women – vs. about half of men – say a major reason why women are underrepresented in top positions in politics and business is that they have to do more to prove themselves. And while about six-in-ten women say gender discrimination is a major obstacle to female leadership in each of these realms, smaller shares of men say this is the case in the corporate world (44%) or in politics (36%).
Promotion Gender Equality in Your Business
Things are changing, but the pace of change for women to be represented in the industries of technology is going too slow. At this pace, as was noted in The New York Times article, it will take decades for women to be equally represented, which means men will dominate and larger segments of women can be left behind in lower paying jobs, and with limited advancement opportunities. As a business leader, there are several things you can do to be aware of ensuring gender equality within your team and business.
1. Take a look at the gender numbers.
The first place to look is at your team members. Do you see women well represented within your department and business? Also, determine if women are being paid the same as men for the same functions. Finally, see if women are equally represented in leadership positions.
2. Practice blind recruiting.
Unfortunately, humans have biases and make judgments. Even if we try not to have preferences, sometimes these biases exist subconsciously. To ensure that you’re hiring based on talent and ability, and not on gender, practice blind recruiting.
3. Draw a line in the sand.
Ensure that your company has a policy for harassment and discrimination. Should your business find itself in a situation where someone files a complaint, don’t make the mistake of sweeping it under the rug. Take it very seriously and have a transparent process for deciding the claim.
The challenge in ensuring there is gender equality happens in the years ahead is vital because of the exponential advances occurring in technology and the sciences. Businesses cannot afford to look the other way and pretend we do not have to address this issue. If business leaders do not step up and take it upon themselves to ensure gender equality, and all that it means, in their companies and the public space, we could face greater gender inequality in the not too distant future.
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