On: Why Is Silicon Valley So Awful to Women?

[LyndsySimon]

> Underrepresention is a problem worth addressing in its own right.

Not on its own, it's not.

The vast majority of healthcare workers are female. 98% of dental hygienists, and 91% of RNs are women.

There are 3.6m programmers in the US (as of 2017) and 3.5m nurses (as of 2011) - programmers and nurses have relatively similar salary ranges.

Is the underrepresentation of men in the nursing profession worth addressing on its own?

How about electricians? 99% of journeyman electricians in the US are male. Is that worth addressing?

[DanBC → LyndsySimon]

> Is the underrepresentation of men in the nursing profession worth addressing on its own?

Yes, and there are programmes encouraging men to go into nursing.

[DanBC → flukus]

> We don't say there's a problem with the health care industry

We do.

[eli → LyndsySimon]

Of course the gender disparity in healthcare is a problem too. You disagree? Google those job titles and "gender inequality" for many articles and discussions about the problem and what's being done.

The gender gap is particularly significant in careers that pay well and are growing in numbers, such as those in IT. (It's a problem that most flight attendants are female, but IMHO it's less pressing.)

[_m8fo → LyndsySimon]

How is any of this even relevant?

[LyndsySimon → _m8fo]

The parent poster made the assertion that underrepresentation is worth addressing on its own, absent other factors.

I don't believe that's true.