If you ever have to book a mechanic or an engineer to visit your home, typically you will expect a man to turn up at your door. This stereotype is what has held women back from being at the forefront of tech, but why is that?
Why are there fewer women in STEM?
When it comes down to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths (or more commonly known as ‘STEM’) there are far fewer women than men involved. There’s definitely been an increase in women studying these programs at university and college, but the percentage of women actually working on STEM projects in the field has declined.
This could be because women who opt for a career in STEM are likely to be paid less. This is also stereotypically considered a ‘masculine’ industry due to the number of men who are interested in and involved with STEM.
There have been wrong beliefs about the intelligence of women and the way that their brains work, meaning that it was previously perceived that men can handle specialised tasks better whereas females can work well with verbal recall tasks. This social bias can affect the progression of a woman’s learning of STEM research and sway their career choices elsewhere.
Unfortunately, workplaces and education boards aren’t making enough changes to accommodate women into this world of tech and STEM education. With fewer women encouraged to maintain their interests of science and math, they go on to study other vocations and typically end up with careers in different industries, thus resulting in the reduction of the potential number of women involved in tech.
There are some women involved in tech, who are incredibly talented within their field. However, with only a few role models to look up to, women who are interested in STEM or just getting into it might struggle to find motivation or inspiration for their goals.
What other industries are lacking women?
Other industries that are lacking female representation are those within construction, driving, and engineering. These include jobs such as women who drive buses and lorries, those who visit homes to repair satellites and phone lines, or women who use heavy duty construction tools such as pillar drills.
This again is due to these industries being seen as stereotypically male and there being little to no encouragement for women to join these industries even though they are just as capable.
What can businesses do?
For businesses to make the workplace more equal for both women and men, and offer relevant opportunities, they should avoid using stereotyped job descriptions. Avoid any mention of gender within the role description and avoid using ‘masculine’ words.
They should also promote equal pay when offering the same role to both men and women. As long as each applicant is offering the same skillset, they should be offered equal amounts of pay and treated equally throughout the entire process.
Businesses should provide their employees with clear progression paths and opportunities to work their way up the company. They should also provide their employees with recognition when they perform well at work.
A welcoming environment can encourage more positive word-of-mouth and will result in more potential employees having interest in the business – hopefully with many of these interested applicants being women.