Thank you. First off, happy St. Patrick's Day to everybody.
On behalf of the 10,000 members of the Canadian Federation of University Women, I thank you for the opportunity to present before this committee. CFUW is a non-partisan, self-funded organization of graduate women, students, and associate members in 112 clubs across the country. CFUW supports better public understanding and recognition of non-traditional work for women and encourages fostering pride in those occupations among women as well as men.
In general, widespread discrimination against women workers in male-dominated trades and occupations ranges from subtle to overt at work sites, colleges, and training centres. It is more overt in some trades than in the university or professional setting.
Most of the background for this paper came from British studies.
A 2007 Canadian study provided the following information on women in universities. At the undergraduate level, women students had reached more than parity. Fifty-eight percent of students at the undergraduate level were women. Women made up 51% at the Master's level, 45.6% at the PhD level, 41.4% of assistant professors, and 34.7% of associate professors. However, when we reach the level of full professors, only 18.8% were women, and as presidents of universities, women were the exception, at 13%.
In January 2005, then president of Harvard University, Lawrence Summers, suggested that the under-representation of women in science and engineering might be due, he said, at least in part, to inherent sex differences in cognitive abilities in math and science. Many felt that Dr. Summers' comments reflected deep-seated stereotypes about men's and women's natural abilities.
The question is whether cultural stereotypes help to diminish women's interest and performance in domains that have traditionally been dominated by men. From an early age, children are bombarded with cues that advertise which toys are appropriate for boys and which are for girls, and they soon develop different beliefs about their own competencies in certain fields. Many studies have shown that gender socialization leads girls to devalue math and science more so than do boys. What needs to happen to make sure that more women enter what are currently male-dominated careers is to educate the parents, teachers, and counsellors so that girls will be encouraged to take up these fields.
Gender differences in attitudes and beliefs appear to develop in early adolescence. Girls often experience low confidence of success in mathematics. In one study, twice as many men as women chose majors with a moderate level of mathematics, such as architecture, business, and economics. Men were four times as likely to pursue majors with high mathematical content, such as pure science, physics, engineering, and mathematics. At the same time, women, on average, scored lower on important standardized tests, thus constraining opportunities to receive advanced placements in math-related fields, which often leads to the fact that they end up in lower-paid jobs.
Socialization influences women's interest in and perception of different activities. Even where teachers, parents, and peers are supportive and the individual wants to pursue a career in a male-dominated profession, repeated exposure to stereotypes can negatively affect career aspirations. Some women may successfully buffer themselves from the experience, but they eventually get tired of trying to succeed in an area where they are expected to fail, must repeatedly disprove the cultural stereotype, or deal with an inflexible workplace, and they decide to opt for another career choice.
Several things need to happen. At interview, it is important to ensure that the interviewer does not allow stereotypes and bias to influence his ability to judge the real merit of the candidate. Once the candidate is hired, the workplace must be one where the woman can receive the respect due to her for her qualifications. Co-workers need to be encouraged to be both collegial and supportive.
Finally, it is found that when there are few women in a field, that field is seen as essentially male-dominated. As more women enter the field, greater numbers of other women are encouraged to join that field, and there is more support and more networking, and so on. Women students need to be assured that when they graduate, they will be hired on the same basis that men are hired and that the workplace they enter will value their contributions.
Regarding pay equity, when women are hired, it is important that their work be valued and that they be paid the same as men in that workplace. Currently, women earn 71ยข for every dollar that men earn. This means that after university they take longer to pay off their debts, contribute less to EI, and receive lower pensions in the end.
In the workplace, women need appropriate facilities on site, for example, washrooms.
Child care is important for women who are mothers so that they can compete in the workplace on an equal basis with men. Women can be mothers and yet not have a partner available to look after the children.
Access to flexible work patterns would be helpful when women need to care for dependants.
The following are solutions.
There needs to be a coordinated effort to increase women's participation in male-dominated domains. Threat-free environments would be helpful. Parents, teachers, counsellors, and the public need education about the role of social context in shaping women's performance in male-dominated areas.
If women are to stay in a male-dominated workplace, that workplace needs to be women-friendly and offer fair opportunities for advancement on career paths. Women's increased entry at the undergraduate and college levels indicates positive change. Society needs to allow itself to hire women in non-traditional roles, on an equal basis with men, and provide them with the support and protection needed to keep them there.
I'm finished.