When we think of gender-based discrimination, it’s probably fair to say that we mostly think of discrimination against women. Research from King’s College London reminds us, however, that men are not immune from discrimination, especially when applying for roles in female-dominated jobs.

The researchers submitted over 12,000 resumes to around 4,000 different jobs across Australia, and found that deep-rooted gender stereotypes can harm the prospects of mwn when they apply for roles in female-dominated sectors. The results show that men received around 40% fewer call-backs when the roles were typically dominated by women than female applicants were identical credentials.

Gender norms

The researchers classified each role as being either male-dominated, female-dominated, or gender-balanced. Each resume featured either a traditionally male or female name, with the names covering a range of ethnic groups. Apart from the names, each application was identical in terms of qualifications and exierence.

It’s worth saying that men benefitted by broadly similar amounts when applying for stereotypically male roles, and received 50% more call-backs than women for such applications. The findings illustrate the high levels of gender bias across the recruitment process when roles are characterized as being either male or female.

“Research into occupational gender segregation often focuses on the employment prospects of female applicants for male-dominated occupations. Not much was known about the relationship between occupational gender segregation and the employment prospects of male applicants. Our findings suggest that gender discrimination against both men and women in recruitment is caused by occupational gender segregation,” the researchers explain.

Gender segregation

The researchers define occupational gender segregation as the unequal distribution of men and women across various occupational categories. They focused primarily on occupations that were dominated by women, including HR professionals, administrative roles, receptionists, and cleaners. To allow a degree of comparison, they also analyzed male-dominated roles, including electrician and laborer. They also included gender-balanced roles, such as accountancy and marketing.

The results suggest that men were least likely to get a call-back when they applied for roles as a sales assistant, administrative worker, receptionist, or cleaner. The researchers believe that the findings highlight the need for initiatives to help eliminate such gender segregation.

“Occupational gender segregation is unlikely to disappear unaided. More government and business initiatives, which we often observe for the STEM professions, are necessary for other professions to tackle the issue of occupational gender segregation and hiring discrimination,” they explain.

They remind us that while it’s obviously important to ensure that people have access to higher-paid roles, it’s equally important that people are able to find roles that suit them and that the workforce is diversified as much as possible.