Australia is sleepwalking into a STEM skills shortage as it fails to address gender inequity, peak body warns
Science in Australia Gender Equity (SAGE) is warning Australia will fail to meet the demand for skilled STEM professionals without addressing the widespread gender inequity in the sector.
According to Commonwealth forecasts, Australia needs an extra half a million highly skilled STEM professionals in the next 10 years to meet the needs of the growing innovation economy.
SAGE CEO Dr Janin Bredehoeft said National Science Week (15–23 August) aims to promote careers in STEM and attract the next generation of scientists.
“But the stark reality is that just 16% of STEM roles are currently held by women. At the current rate, girls attending National Science Week events will retire before they can expect an equal place in the jobs that will define this century,” Dr Bredehoeft said.
Women now make up 39% of university STEM graduates. But they quickly go missing. Less than a third are working in STEM roles just five years after graduating. That compares with 57% of male graduates.
Women graduates can expect to earn up to $6,000 less in science and mathematics graduate roles than men, one of the worst graduate gender pay gaps of any sector. The pay and opportunity gap continues throughout their careers, with just 13% of CEOs in STEM organisations being women.
“But we know how to fix the problem because parts of the sector are already doing it. STEM employers need to address conscious and unconscious bias in recruitment processes and among panel members; assess candidates on what they have achieved and the impact they have had as well as their potential, not how many uninterrupted hours they logged; improve flexible work and work-from-home options; and offer parental leave and return-to-work options that benefit both parents,” Dr Bredehoeft said.
SAGE has tracked the impact across more than 80 research-focused organisations. Those making comprehensive change have seen their (median total remuneration) gender pay gap reduce year on year to 6.4% on average, 37% lower than the sector organisations not taking comprehensive action. Those implementing change also have higher representation of women in leadership.
Dr Bredehoeft said the slow rate of progress has meant Australia has relied on skilled migration to bridge the STEM skills gap to date.
“It is long overdue for political and industry leaders to demand that STEM organisations remove the structures limiting women’s opportunities to a fair go in STEM.”
“It doesn’t require lowering the bar, but removing the invisible barriers.”
About us:
Background
SAGE is Australia’s peak STEMM gender equity, diversity and inclusion not-for-profit working with the tertiary education and research sectors to improve representation of women and marginalised groups.
