I was having a conversation the other day about the disadvantages women face in the workplace. I was trying to make some points, then realized that while I have general knowledge about things, I have no facts to back them up. It was also tough to rebut things because there seem to be a lot of generalities (women tend to do childrearing, women tend not to go into math/science, etc) and because I went to an engineering school where all the women were high-achieving math nerd pre-meds.
Things I think I know, but don't know why:
- There are less women than men in the workplace because the modern (American) workplace does not accommodate people who have childcare duties, and these people tend to be women
- Women doing the same work as men tend to be paid less and tend to be promoted less
- There are less women in math/science because the educational culture is geared towards different models of learning (not sure about this one). There is also a higher attrition rate for women -- a smaller % gets a bachelors, masters, phd, asst professorship, etc.
- Women are more likely than men to leave the workforce when they have kids ...
- partially because of cultural expectations, but also (these days) because they have the lower paying / less important job ...
- but they made a conscious choice to pursue a less lucrative career ...
- but career choices women make are affected by a culture that has ascribed specific gender roles
Women's studies were never part of the curriculum at school, and while I find gender studies news articles, discussions, and radio bits fascinating, I rarely follow up to the source after the initial read. Any recommendations for not-so-academic readings I should do? Any basic facts I should know for sure?
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