Address gender bias in the scientific community

Besides affirmative action, women need equal opportunity and wage parity

Never one to shy away from straight talking, textiles minister Smriti Irani dampened the self-congratulatory mood at the Indian Science Congress by calling out the inherent gender bias in the scientific community that is denying opportunities to women. Addressing scientists, who work in fields that value rationality, objectivity and meritocracy, Ms Irani used data to put the spotlight on the gender bias in research and the workspace that pushed women to the margins. Of the 280,000 scientists and engineers employed in research and development institutions across India, only 39,200 (14%) are women. Four out every five women working in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) sectors in India say they face pervasive gender bias that affects hiring, performance evaluation, promotion, salary, perks and funding opportunities.

While the government’s Women Scientist Scheme offers funding and opportunities to women who took a career break to help them return to mainstream science the gender gap in employment will narrow only when STEM professions offer a level playing field for all genders. Over the past two decades, the number of women opting to study STEM subjects that offer the best paid jobs has steadily reduced across the world, with the disparity in wages in favour of men persisting.

If admission to the 23 Indian Institutes of Technology (IITS) is an indication in India, the number of women studying STEM courses has registered a steady drop, which led the government to take affirmative action and add 946 supernumerary seats for women in the 2019 academic session, up from 779 in 2018. With these women-only seats at IITS going up from 14% in 2018 to 17% in 2019, women IIT entrants may cross 2,000 for the first time this year. More than affirmative action, however, what women need is equal opportunity and wage parity to thrive in the classrooms, laboratories and workplaces.