International Women’s Day: let’s talk about women in lab informatics

On International Women’s Day 2024, 32 Stripes asks the question: Against the backdrop of male-dominated fields in science and informatics, how can laboratory informatics vendors attract, retain and develop women?

This International Women’s Day, we should reflect on the fact that only 26.7% of workers in tech organisations are women, according to Tech Report. And, while they represent 33.3% of all researchers, only 12% of members of national science academies are women. Even more startling, research published in Nature uncovered that women are significantly less likely to be named on a given article or patent produced by their team, relative to their male peers.

So, against this backdrop in the male-dominated fields of science and informatics, how can laboratory informatics vendors attract, retain and develop women?

Of course, there is much to be done still through education, though gladly there are many great organisations in the UK encouraging girls into STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) education and careers, such as Stemettes, Women in STEM, Girl Geeks, among others.

But for now, how can recruiters in this field ensure that they are appealing to women as well as men?

1. Use inclusive language

Some terms and descriptors appeal more to men than women, so it is worth having your job specs and ads read by a range of people and asking for their impressions and feedback. Surprisingly, even how you format these documents can have an impact. Debbie Foster, the chief executive from Tech Talent Charter, said that if more than half of a job description is in bullet points, you’ll see a rapid decrease in women applying for the role.

2. Promote flexibility and work-life balance

A British Chambers of Commerce survey of 4,000 women, the findings of which were published to coincide with last year’s IWD, found that two-thirds of women with childcare responsibilities felt they had missed out on career progression as a direct result. And three quarters of women said there was not sufficient support for those going through the menopause. Flexibility is not only a gender-based issue, but without offering it, employers will automatically miss out on some of the already scarce female applicants in this market, for whom it is essential, not a nice to have.  

3. Involve women in the interview process

Given that women are already in the minority in science and informatics, recruiters could make female candidates feel more at ease, or confident, by involving one or more women in the interview process. This could help to highlight the opportunities available to women and how the organisation values its female employees.

4. Consider taking ‘Positive Action’

The Equality Act 2010 allows employers to use Positive Action to take a person’s protected characteristic into account when deciding who to appoint or promote. Positive Action applies if people with a particular protected characteristic (gender in this case) are at a disadvantage or are under-represented in the workforce, and the applicant with the protected characteristic is equally qualified with other applicants. However, employers considering this approach are well advised to take legal advice first, to ensure full compliance.

Hopefully, we don’t need to remind anyone reading this post of the benefits of attracting more women into the laboratory informatics sector. While there is still a long way to go, there are simple things employers can be doing to ensure they are well placed to attract and retain women.

For any support finding the right candidate for hard to fill roles in laboratory informatics, contact us. Happy International Women’s Day 2024!

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