Since the pandemic began, economies worldwide have taken massive hits. In the United States, we have seen businesses close, companies lay off their workers, and individuals clutch their money tighter. We posit that the pandemic affects certain groups of people disproportionately, specifically women that work in the technology industry. In our blog, we’ll research how COVID-19 creates additional, possibly long-lasting challenges to gender compositions in tech.

Hofhuis, J., van der Zee, K. I., & Otten, S. (2016). Dealing with differences: the impact of perceived diversity outcomes on selection and assessment of minority candidates. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 27(12), 1319–1339. https://doi-org.ezproxy.library.wwu.edu/10.1080/09585192.2015.1072100

This article gives insights on recruiters’ biases toward minority candidates. Discrimination laws prevent recruiters and businesses from discriminating against minority groups in the hiring process. Recruiters tend to subconsciously use biases when selecting candidates for a job. These subconscious thoughts when comparing the effectiveness of a candidate in a job has an effect on the percentage of minorities in the workforce. This article was chosen to help give insights on why certain subgroups are disproportionately affected in the hiring process. With this information, we can find solutions that HR departments and upper management can implement to prevent these disproportionate issues. 

Madgavkar, A., White, O., Krishnan, M., Mahajan, D., & Azcue, X. (2020, July 17). COVID-19 and gender equality: Countering the regressive effects. McKinsey & Company. https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/future-of-work/covid-19-and-gender-equality-countering-the-regressive-effects. 

Our research is going to show how they COVID 19 pandemic has disproportionately affected women in the tech industry workforce. Our blog post will also give possible solutions that light upon gender inequality in the tech industry and what needs to change. This website offers a great resource for this study. For instance, this article lights upon the pre existing gender inequalities and how they have made women specifically most vulnerable to the COVID 19 economic downturn.

Alon, T., Doepke, M., Olmstead-Rumsey, J., & Tertilt, M. (2020). The Impact of COVID-19 on Gender Equality. NBER WORKING PAPER SERIES. doi:10.3386/w26947

This study goes in depth into the different ways in which gender disparities in the workforce are created by the Coronavirus pandemic. The study covers childcare, volatility, flexibility and other factors between men and women that the pandemic can affect. Understanding the causes of gender disparity that the Coronavirus could be exacerbating will be important in finding the correct solutions. 

Perry, T. S. (2020). Black tech professionals are still paid less than their white colleagues: And women make less than their male colleagues, regardless of racial identity – [Spectral Lines]. IEEE Spectrum, 57(8), 4. https://doi-org.ezproxy.library.wwu.edu/10.1109/MSPEC.2020.9150538

This article dives into differences in salary between black tech professionals and white tech professionals, as well as female tech professionals and male tech professionals. Through Tekla Perry’s studies, it was found that black tech workers are paid significantly less than white tech workers, hispanic tech workers are still paid less than white tech workers but do better than black tech workers, and asian tech workers get paid more than their white tech colleagues. It was also found that, according to the Hired’s 2020 State of Wage Inequality in the Workplace Report, that women tech workers are paid less than their male tech colleagues. This data shows that, even prior to the pandemic, tech workers are paid differently depending on sexual orientation and race. This article doesn’t talk specifically about how women have been impacted even further since the start of the pandemic. But, it is helpful to understand that there were already noticeable salary inequalities before the pandemic. This will be helpful when comparing inequalities women tech workers face now and if it is any different than how they were treated before the pandemic.

Grandy, Gina, Cukier, Wendy, & Gagnon, Suzanne. (2020). (In)visibility in the margins: COVID-19, women entrepreneurs and the need for inclusive recovery. Gender in Management., Ahead-of-print(Ahead-of-print), Gender in management. , 2020, Vol.ahead-of-print(ahead-of-print).

While this fascinatingly complex article is aimed towards the disproportionate effects of COVID-19 on women entrepreneurs, the authors also include research pertaining to women in the technology industry. Expounding upon a journal published in 2010, this journal specifically targets women in management and what Lewis and Simpson call “the complexity of (in)visibility.” The findings posit that while the government continues to throw millions of dollars at the problem, dynamic, structural solutions to gender inequality continue to evade the industry. As our group delves into COVID-19’s disproportionate effect on women in tech, this journal makes critical parallels between entrepreneurship and technology. To be sure, there are female entrepreneurs in the technology industry that have had more difficulty than their male counterparts obtaining government funds, capital and sound advising. The journal forces readers to explore the ways that COVID presents new barriers and disadvantages business women.

Dwyer, S., Richard, O. C., & Chadwick, K. (2003). Gender diversity in management and firm performance: The influence of growth orientation and organizational culture. Journal of Business Research, 56(12), 1009-1019. doi:10.1016/s0148-2963(01)00329-0

Sanchez, J. I., & Brock, P. (1996). Outcomes of perceived discrimination among Hispanic employees: Is diversity management a luxury or a necessity? Academy of Management Journal, 39(3), 704–719. https://doi.org/10.2307/256660

Created by Taliah Coe, Nicole Crook, Matthew Hillis, Cavan Sperry and Joshua Soto