Courage Campaign Relaunch: Women in Science Fighting the Gender Pay Gap
Let’s clarify something: Gender-based oppression is not an individual issue. It is not the fault of women or other gender minorities. Gender-based oppression is a systemic and structural issue built upon many long-held beliefs of who can and should be in power. While nearly all women have and will face gender-based oppression at some point in their career, the problem is not us, the problem is the system. Much like other systemic issues, while individual action is helpful, the biggest change comes from those with the most power.
At Women in Science Portland (WIS PDX), we are dedicated to creating an inclusive community that provides connection and resources to advocate for, empower, and advance women in science.
For this reason, WIS PDX is very proud to announce the relaunch of the Courage Campaign!
What is the Courage Campaign?
The Courage Campaign is a WIS PDX advocacy initiative that originated in September 2021 to provide a safe space for women-identifying folks in science to feel seen, heard, and supported if/when they face any form of gender-based oppression.
In the original campaign, we focused on sharing anonymous stories of women’s survival and speaking out against gender-based oppression to raise awareness of gender-based discrimination.
In this relaunch we continue the fight for a more equitable science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) environment. This time our focus is on the Gender Pay Gap.
Why the gender pay gap?
Women in science, on average, earn between 51%-84% of what their male coworkers make in 1 year. This means that it takes women up to 11 extra months to earn the same pay a man makes in 12 months, despite being in comparable roles!
Numerous factors contribute to the systemic operations that allow pay inequity to persist. For example:
🧑🔬Gender imbalance in participation in the STEM workforce – As of 2023, women make up only 28% of the STEM workforce.
🧬Gender imbalance in STEM disciplines – Women make up between 16.5-46% of STEM disciplines and are the least represented in fast growing and high-demand fields, such technology.
🏛️ Gender gap in leadership – Women hold only 5% of senior leadership positions and 3% of CEO positions in the tech industry.
📈Gender-biased performance assessment – Women are more likely to receive subjective vs objective assessment of her work performance and less likely to receive direct constructive feedback on how to advance in her career compared to a man.
🏠Gender gap in domestic labor – Women perform 75+% of the unpaid housework and 80% of childcare work vs men, limiting opportunities for networking, mentorship, and other career development tools.
🫄Motherhood penalty vs fatherhood bonus – Mothers are less likely to be hired and paid equitably and more likely to be perceived as incompetent versus male colleagues with the same qualifications.
👶Motherhood vs career dilemma – ~50% of US women in science leave full-time STEM careers after their 1st child.
The above inequities become multiplied when we consider other intersectional identities, such as race, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, class, ability, religion, and nationality, all of which are unique to every woman.
WIS PDX is committed to fighting the systems of oppression that prevent women and non-binary individuals from excelling in STEM and beyond. Throughout the Courage Campaign, we will be providing women with a safe space where they can share their stories and access resources to shift the onus of oppression from the individual, identify structural patterns of oppression that allow pay inequity to persist, and empower us with solutions to fight back.
How to join the cause?
We encourage anyone who identifies as a woman or non-binary individual in science or who is committed to fighting gender-based oppression in STEM to join our cause.
There are many ways to participate in the campaign:
🤝 Start a conversation with friends or coworkers about gender disparities within STEM. Specifically, talk with your friends and coworkers about money. Ask the men in your life what their salary is.
💸 Equal pay day – the day that represents how much longer it takes for women to earn the same salary as men do in 12 months – varies by multiple factors. Calculate your equal pay day to see how you compare.
🔊 Share posts with friends or on your stories/profiles. The more eyes we get on these issues and ongoing efforts to solve them, the more we can help those efforts!
💬 Comment on social media posts or email us at couragecampaign@womeninsciencepdx.org. Tell us your experiences (you can also use the survey below if you wish to remain anonymous), share what you’ve read or seen on this topic, or tag people who need to see this stuff!
✅ Complete this survey to submit an anonymous experience to WIS PDX. With each submitter’s consent, WIS PDX will compile each story to share with the community to ensure that they are heard. We recognize that recounting these experiences may be traumatic and we want to offer support to any individual who needs it throughout this process. You are not alone, and you do not need to endure this alone.
✍️ Start a petition or write a letter to your local representative advocating for legislation that promotes pay equity in your state. Not sure where to start? Check out this template.
🙋Interested in volunteering for the campaign? We have many positions available (blog writers, graphic designers, planning committee, and more) with flexible time commitments. For more information or to volunteer, contact us at couragecampaign@womeninsciencepdx.org.
We appreciate any contribution to the campaign, big or small. Through this campaign, we hope to raise awareness of the many issues faced by women and non-binary individuals within STEM that start conversations within the larger community to affect actionable changes towards a more diverse, equitable, inclusive, and just STEM community.
Follow the campaign on our website or at #WISPDXCourageCampaign on twitter, instagram, LinkedIn, and facebook.
About the Author:
Natasha Fowler, Ph.D. (she/her) is an interdisciplinary clinical scientist who’s passionate about overseeing projects and programs that make science and healthcare more diverse, equitable, and inclusive and applying this knowledge to improve prevention, diagnostic, and treatment strategies. She’s also an advocate for scientists interested in non-academic careers. As the Communications Committee Chair of WIS and a volunteer on the WIS Professional Development Committee, Natasha loves connecting people with other people and with information that can aid in their career journey. Outside of work, Natasha is an avid traveler who loves connecting with others through food, different languages, and comedy.