It’s 2019 and you are a new mom who just returned to work at Microsoft; you’ve been working there for the last six years. You see no advancement and no increase in pay or responsibilities in your future. In fact, when you tried to push for a promotion, your manager told you that he did not want to “waste” a promotion on you in case you became pregnant again. You have the same job you have had for the past six years, while your male colleagues who started at the same time are now so far ahead you could never catch up. You have thought about options to advance your career. Finding no solution, you send an email asking your female colleagues for career advice. Imagine your surprise when dozens of women reply to your email sharing their own complaints about repeated discrimination and harassment, which the Human Resources department has ignored. Would it at all surprise you to learn that something very similar actually did happen at Microsoft not too long ago? How did we get here?
The “Motherhood Penalty”
Maternity, “the natural biological role of women,” has traditionally been seen as their major societal role. The stereotype that “a woman’s place is in the home” has heavily influenced how women choose to live their lives. Although women have greater control over what they do with their bodies in terms of motherhood, the cultural pressure for women to become wives and mothers still prevents many talented women from finishing college and pursuing careers outside the home. If a woman does pursue a higher education and a powerful career, there are still many hoops to jump through at work.
“The motherhood penalty plays a significant role in holding back women from leadership positions and contributes significantly to the gender wage gap. ”
Sixty-nine percent of working Americans say that working moms are more likely to be passed up for a new job than other employees. Sixty percent say that career opportunities are given to less qualified employees instead of working moms who may be more skilled. Seventy-two percent of working moms and dads agree that women are penalized in their careers for starting families, while men are not. The motherhood penalty plays a significant role in holding back women from leadership positions and contributes significantly to the gender wage gap. According to an analysis of Census data, it is costing women $16,000 a year in lost wages. Also, mothers in the United States get paid seventy-one cents for every dollar their male counterparts make. Moreover, this bias affects women who do not and may not ever have children.
With statistics like these, it is no wonder that technology companies have trouble retaining talented women. In fact, women are two-times more likely to quit tech jobs than men. However, it is not a lack of love for the field that makes these women leave—it is the lack of inclusivity in the industry culture.
Why Do We Care If There Are Less Women in Tech?
Other than just promoting equality, there are many reasons why everyone would benefit from more women in technology. The diversity of thought gained by adding women into the technological workforce would lead to better problem-solving. Also, increasing the number of women in technology would help to innovate an entire marketplace of female oriented products. Moreover, because women control most household spending, women innovators can develop products better suited for and marketed to women. Overall, the United States needs more technology talent to compete with the competitive global market. Accordingly, not only will increasing the number of women in technology benefit women, it will also increase productivity and profits, and benefit the country as a whole.
How Do We Fix the Problem?
This increase will not happen unless we resolve the things that deter women from pursuing technology. One of those issues is the motherhood penalty. To fix this, Congress should pass a law providing a tax credit to firms who implement a better work environment. This Act would focus on preventing companies from penalizing women who are caregivers and encouraging companies to provide more opportunities for women to be both a caregiver and a valued employee with opportunities to advance.
Some companies already provide a “better work environment,” and can be used as a guide. One of those companies is Patagonia, an outdoor clothing company who has a 100 percent return rate for women who have had or adopted children. Patagonia offers an on-site childcare center run by qualified teachers—which only four percent of companies provide—safe places to nurse newborns, ample paid leave, and nannies to accompany the child and parent if work travel is necessary. Companies like Netflix, Google, and YouTube have also implemented work policies to encourage women to stay. Netflix offers unlimited paid parental leave for a year following the birth or adoption of a child. At Google and YouTube, birth mothers get eighteen weeks of paid leave, during which their stock shares vest.
Opponents of this Act may say this is not a solution to the problem because it still puts a lot of emphasis on women being primary caregivers. But these companies demonstrate that these policies are working. Times are changing and women are not the only primary caregivers of children, but it is still an important factor for a lot of women. This Act would encourage more women to pursue this field and ease their minds about being able to spend time with their children and have adequate childcare for them. It is challenging to change the fact that women are primary caregivers, but it is possible to make it easier for them to succeed in their careers and participate in the workforce in a meaningful way. Congress should pass these new laws for the future of women in tech and to strengthen our country as a whole.