As the number of careers in science, technology, engineering and math increase, we need to make room for women. 

Women have constantly been underrepresented and underappreciated in the workforce, only representing 27% of STEM workers in 2019, according to the United States Census Bureau. 

Gender bias in the workplace is extremely unfair to women in career fields that are male-oriented. Women can do anything that men can do, and occasionally even better than men. As a society, companies need to do better at eliminating biases against gender. 

Ursula Sullivan, a professor in NIU’s College of Business, said having data on women in the workplace is beneficial.

“You know, no one said you had to act a certain way or do something a certain way, but I think what really helped me was that I came with facts,” Sullivan said. “So in order for, I think, women to break through or anyone really to break through, you need to be ready to provide data and facts and come from a non-emotional viewpoint, I guess, is a way to put it.”

While being prepared and having data is beneficial in the workforce, women should not have to provide data in order to break through at their job.

Women who are working full-time and year-round get paid 83.7% of what men are paid, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Women should be paid the same, if not more than men, especially for completing the same amount of work. Men shouldn’t get paid more than women just for being “hardworking” when there are plenty of hardworking women.

Society plays a large role in breaking the stigma surrounding women in male-oriented fields.

Education can help to challenge gender norms in the workplace. We need to break the stigma of assigning certain jobs to individuals based on their gender. Women can be a teacher or a nurse, but they can also be police officers, an engineer, truck drivers, scientists and much more.

“I think if society in general was a little bit more accepting of differences among people, I think, that would make a huge difference. I think sometimes, and it’s very natural, right, for us to get very comfortable with people who are like us,” Sullivan said. “We get very comfortable with those around us that we don’t appreciate what people who are different might bring to the table.”

Women are less likely to get hired than men, with the global labor force for women being less than 50% compared to over 70% for men, according to the International Labor Organization. 

Businesses should provide equal opportunities in hiring, leadership and promotion. Female employees are just as capable of being managers or CEOs as men are. 

Even if women do get hired in male-dominated industries, they face more challenges. 

If women have a family, they may face challenges in balancing children and their careers. For example, women have to take time off work when they have kids. Most parents want to take maternity leave, however, it is women who are often blamed for taking leave and men are shamed into not taking the time off to spend with their children, according to BabyCenter. 

Women also tend to stay home with their sick children more than men do, with nearly 40% of women taking care of their sick children, according to a study by KFF, a non-profit organization. Therefore, women wind up losing money at no fault of their own.

Women are more than just mothers and deserve to be treated as such.

End the stereotype that women shouldn’t work in male-dominated fields.