I walked into (my) Environmental Science (class) and took a seat next to the charging outlets. I often forget to charge my computer, so it was convenient. When I finally got out my things and settled down in my chair, I took a look at my peers. I had seen some of them in previous classes, others were completely new to me. One constant did remain, and that was the majority of them were male. Not in a close-cut way, this ratio was drastic. About five girls to fifteen guys. As the semester went on, no one mentioned it. I looked back at my past courses and started to realize that this wasn't new. In any advanced science or math class that I took during middle or high school, there was a male majority. That often brought up questions like, "Is it going to be the same in college?" "Why are all these STEM fields male-dominated?" "How does this affect other minorities often excluded from the STEM field?" I was disturbed and curious at the same time. So on a quest to get these questions answered, I did some research.
Upon my research, I realized it's hard to not be aware of the obvious discrepancies between minorities and the larger demographics in the workplace. Especially in computer and math occupations. Black and Hispanic people are underrepresented in tech by about 50%. This also transcends representation into wage. Black and Hispanic men were paid an average of $14-$15 hourly wages to White men’s $21 per hour in 2015. Today, Black women are paid 64 cents to every dollar a White man is paid. When we see these odd and harmful inconsistencies, finding and dismantling their core starts with understanding the root of the cause.
Big companies like Apple, Microsoft, Twitter, etc that have shockingly low numbers of Black and Hispanic employees should not be struggling to find them. The reason they are is that they are not actively searching for employees beyond predominantly White and Asian communities. For example, not hiring graduates from historically Black universities or HBCUs. There is also implicit bias among White managers typically looking to hire employees that are similar to themselves. This brings up issues like Black hair being deemed unprofessional in the workplace and “Black names” being less likely to be called in for an interview. It doesn’t end at the hiring process either. Guy Primus is a chief officer at Valence Technology. In an article called The Need For More Black Workers in Tech, he states, “A lack of role models and even peers means that Black employees are less likely to have a valued and trusted workplace community.” This experience can encourage potential Black employees to leave the Tech field or shrink their appearance in it, further throwing salt on the wound.
Women, in general, are also struggling as a minority in the tech industry. This male-dominated field leaves few female role models to encourage young girls to go into STEM. Women are more likely to join a STEM career when one of their professors is also a woman. This isn't a problem for men (more so white men) because they don't need to look far to find role models with similar lives or experiences. The unfair advantage men have in this field often pushes women away. According to the Kapoor Center survey, "The top two reasons why women overall left tech occupations were: to seek a better opportunity (33%) and to leave unfair environments (32%)." This can be seen through the 10% fewer women managers are paid, than male managers in San Francisco. Or the fact that 44% of female founders have admitted to facing workplace harassment.
These issues aren’t unfixable. We can address the bias in the workforce by implementing DEI work. DEI focuses on diversity, equity, and inclusion. Diversity in the workplace can look like differences in identity between the members of a company. But it can’t be achieved without equity. Equity prioritizes impartialness. Every individual receives the same outcomes, treatment, compensation, ability to contribute, etc. Diversity also relies on inclusion. If employees have to shun their culture or assimilate into another culture for respect, they will leave. Managers, CEOs, non-managerial employees, and everyone else can focus on implementing elements of DEI in their company policies. This can be done through clear, concise goals about what needs to be achieved to reach equity and using programs like diversity training. If we can treat DEI work with respect and appropriate funding, we can make real strides towards equity.
These strides have already begun. Companies like Kaiser Permanente, Mastercard, Marriott International, to name a few that have implemented DEI, have thrived in areas like innovation and engagement because of it. About 75% of companies that fostered teams centered around DEI perform 50% better than less inclusive companies. According to the Deloitte survey, "83 percent of millennials are actively engaged when they believe their organization fosters an inclusive culture, compared to only 60 percent of millennials who are actively engaged when their organization does not foster an inclusive culture." We're not shooting arrows into the dark here, the progress is apparent.
Right now, there is another confused girl in her Environmental Science course gawking at her classmates. She wants to make a change and it's safe to say that there is work to be done for a change. But this work isn’t out of reach. It’s laid out on the table. All there is to do is pull out a chair for yourself, and maybe a friend.
Sources:
Bagalini, Adwoa. “How Wearing Natural Hairstyles Harms the Job Prospects of Black Women.” World Economic Forum, WeForum, https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/02/natural-hair-black-women-job-discrimination/.
Bui, Quoctrung, and Claire Cain Miller. “Why Tech Degrees Are Not Putting More Blacks and Hispanics into Tech Jobs.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 25 Feb. 2016, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/26/upshot/dont-blame-recruiting-pipeline-for-lack-of-diversity-in-tech.html.
Creary, Stephanie. “How to Elevate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Work in Your Organization.” Knowledge at Wharton, University of Pennsylvania, https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/elevate-diversity-equity-inclusion-work-organization/.
Dean, Sam, and Johana Bhuiyan. “Black, Latino People Are Being Left out of the Tech Workforce.” GovTech, GovTech, 21 Apr. 2021, https://www.govtech.com/workforce/black-latino-people-are-being-left-out-of-the-tech-workforce.html.
Fottrell, Quentin. “This Is How Much Women Leaders in Tech Companies Earn vs. Men (It's Not Pretty).” MarketWatch, MarketWatch, 8 Mar. 2018, https://www.marketwatch.com/story/this-is-how-much-women-leaders-in-tech-companies-earn-vs-men-its-not-pretty-2018-02-08.
Gonzales, Matt. “The Need for More Black Workers in Tech.” SHRM, SHRM, 11 Mar. 2022, https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/behavioral-competencies/global-and-cultural-effectiveness/pages/the-need-for-more-black-workers-in-tech.aspx.
Heinz, Kate, et al. “What Does Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (Dei) Mean in the Workplace?” Built-In, Built-In, 21 Oct. 2021, https://builtin.com/diversity-inclusion/what-does-dei-mean-in-the-workplace.
Jay, Ben. “White Job Applicants Are 2.5 Times More Likely to Get Hired, Northwestern Study Finds.” Grow from Acorns + CNBC, Grow from Acorns + CNBC, 17 June 2020, https://grow.acorns.com/how-hiring-discrimination-gets-worse-later-in-the-process/.
Smith, Christie, and Stephanie Turner. The Radical Transformation of Diversity and Inclusion the ... - Deloitte. Deloitte University, https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/us/Documents/about-deloitte/us-inclus-millennial-influence-120215.pdf?ref=hackernoon.com.
“Tech Leavers.” Kapor Center, 9 May 2018, https://www.kaporcenter.org/tech-leavers/.
Woudstra, Inge. “Role Models Are Key in Gender Diversity – Especially in Tech & Engineering.” SheCanCode, SheCanCode, 11 Apr. 2022, https://shecancode.io/blog/role-models-are-key-in-gender-diversity-especially-in-tech-engineering.
Opmerkingen