Slashdot Mirror
Sexism In Science
An anonymous reader writes with news of a recent paper about the bias among science faculty against female students. The study, recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, asked professors to evaluate applications for a lab manager position. The faculty were given information about fictional applicants with randomly-assigned genders. They tended to rate male applicants as more hire-able than female applicants, and male names also generated higher starting salary and more mentoring offers. This bias was found in both male and female faculty. "The average salary suggested by male scientists for the male student was $30,520; for the female student, it was $27,111. Female scientists recommended, on average, a salary of $29,333 for the male student and $25,000 for the female student."
Bias cannot exist for long in a free market. If females produce results as good as males or better for lower salaries, the companies that hire then have a significant competitive advantage and will likely succeed. Companies will start to hire more women, and there will be more demand than offer for female employees. Consequently women salaries will rise. Simple as that.
If women earn less it is because their results are lacking. I won't risk on the motives of that, but that is an undeniable fact.