Small Group Discusssions TOPIC 4:
IMPROVING THE INSTITUTIONAL STRUCTURE AND CLIMATE FOR WOMEN IN PHYSICS
Discussion leaders:
Manjula Sharma, Australia
Larissa Svirina, Belorus
Ling-An Wu, China
Recorders:
Joanne Baker, UK
Anne Borg, Norway
Peggy Frederickx, Belgium
Issues:
Office and lab space, nurseries, restrooms
Safety, discrimination, sexual harassment
Questions:
1. Do the women at the university and research centers have the same amount of office and lab space as the men?
2. Are there nurseries available at/close to the workplace?
3. Are there the same number of restroom facilities for women and men?
4. Is it safe to work late at night and on weekends?
5. Are there disguised institutional discriminatory policies, e.g. regarding age?
6. Are there any policies regarding sexual harassment? E.g. is it allowed for male faculty to date his own student (this is common in Latin American countries)?
Problems Identified:
Marked Regional Differences:
Developing countries --- 'hardware' conditions difficult
Developed countries --- sexual harrassment problem
Common problem --- Old Boys' internal network
1. Work space
MIT Study, actual area 'fudged' by 20% for women professors with corridors included
Denmark, wife/husband share office
2. Nurseries
Egypt, Belorus, Japan, Malaysia none or poor
Only for professors
3. Mixed sex toilets
S. Africa, Denmark
MIT big lack
Mixed dormitories in Brookhaven labs, Antarctica
4. Safety
Generally ok
Lab instruction could be improved
5. Subtle forms of discrimination
Old boys' informal network, both developed and developing countries
Age -- academic age of women too young
-- early retirement in China
Evaluation - same work less pay, UK
Hidden criteria for resource allocation,
difference 60%
Insufficient recognition, credit all given to men
Perception of women leadership prejudiced
Strong - too assertive
Modest - too weak
Mobility - restricted in Egypt
6. Sexual harassment and discrimination - varying
forms and extents prevalent
Non-existent in Egypt, Islam countries
Not serious in China
Serious in developed countries despite laws
Dating own students, Latin Am. Porn posters and screensavers
Derogatory allusions to women
Sexual slanders, Latin Am
Patronising attitudes
Secretary image of women
Compulsory use of husband's name, Belgium
Male professors refuse girl students, Japan
Recommendations
1. State legislation not enough, must have measures to ensure implementation
Formulate "Equal policy rules" for each individual institution.
Forbid all forms of discrimination related to sex, age, children etc
2. Improve transparency at all decision making levels and eliminate 'old boys' dominance
Especially regarding hiring, salaries, proposals, resource allocation
3. Improve networking amongst women ourselves
Solve problem of isolation both horizontally and vertically:
Horizontally - with peers, meetings, exchange
Vertically - get togethers between faculty
and students
Senior faculty help junior staff
Establish website, counselling
4. Establish monitoring committees to evaluate universities and institutions
USA 5-person committee
-- Must be accredited
-- Funding, by Phys Soc? Minimize costs
-- Regional differences
5. Organize training courses for both male and female faculty
For Men, how to treat women as colleagues
-- Think of own daughter's future difficulties
For Women, how to avoid pitfalls
-- Have self-confidence, learn leadership, negotiation skills
-- Make men allies
6. Work environment must be more family-friendly
Nurseries, restrooms, dorms, nonsmoking
Alternative suggestions
3-person leadership, divides workload
(Belgium)
Actions to be Taken on Return
Report to relevant councils
Speak about this conference through media
Talk to fellow colleagues including
nonphysicists
Set up women's networking