4 ms·

Over 35% of my company's tech hires we're women in Q1, as compared to an industry representation of 20%. 39% of new grad hires we're women when tech grads were

Over 35% of my company's tech hires we're women in Q1, as compared to an industry representation of 20%. 39% of new grad hires we're women when tech grads were about 20% women. When women join the company they received additional mentorship and leadership opportunities that are exclusive to women. They are also promoted at higher rates than men (albeit slightly). This is in addition to the explicitly discriminatory hiring policies I detailed elsewhere in this thread. What about this situation makes you think that white and Asian men are privileged as compared to women? The assumption that women are underprivileged in tech often does not hold up to scrutiny. Many studies have found significant bias in favor of women. When Google studies it's wages recently it found proportionally more men were underpaid. Again in case you missed it, my company does explicitly deny employment opportunities to white and Asian men where they would have been hired were they women: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19464944 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19464944 Barriers are going up. Perhaps at the moment this is limited to certain places like San Francisco and silicon valley. But to say barriers aren't going up for white and Asian men is counterfactual. And besides, I'm Cuban myself so I ostensibly belong to an "underprivileged" group (though I would be among the first to tell you that this is a BS generalization. I am not by any means underprivileged).

yep8883 8y ago
Many studies have found significant bias in favor of women" which studies? I think you are basing your opinion solely on anecdotes from your company/bubble. Women are underrepresented in tech - just go any tech conference and see for yourself. Are women not as smart as men when it comes to tech? Or are there barriers to entry for women?
- manfredo 8y ago
  This one found a 2:1 hiring bias in favor of women: https://www.pnas.org/content/112/17/5360 https://www.pnas.org/content/112/17/5360
- leereeves 8y ago
  Here's one that was big news here not long ago: When Google conducted a study recently to determine whether the company was underpaying women and members of minority groups, it found, to the surprise of just about everyone, that men were paid less money than women for doing similar work. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19303039 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19303039
- dinglejungle 8y ago
  > Are women not as smart as men when it comes to tech? Or are there barriers to entry for women? Those are not the only options.
- sisu2019 8y ago
  > Are women not as smart as men when it comes to tech? I wouldn't say smart because thats a whole other can of worms but generally less suited, yes absolutely no doubt about it. It's weird but outside of the SV-buzzfeed-vice-huffpost filter bubble it's common knowledge that most women would rather do anything else besides stare at a screen all day and do something that neither involves people or art in any way. It's not exactly rocket science but somehow it has become verboten to point out what everyone across cultures around the world (ex US progressives) and even science can clearly see. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/science-news/8992639/Men-and-women-have-distinct-personalities.html https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/science-news/899263... I will say that in the past what I mentioned has been abused to keep out and belittle women who clearly WERE suited to jobs like this. The excellent movie Hidden Figures shows how wrong and sad that is. But two wrongs don't make a right. Focusing on gender parity is also going to make for lot of miserable women pressured into careers that don't really suit them.
jlebar 8y ago
What about this situation makes you think that white and Asian men are privileged as compared to women? What fraction of companies would you estimate have policies similar to yours?
- manfredo 8y ago
  I can only talk about my experience in the SF Bay area, but these policies don't seem too out of place. Some of my co-workers go a step further and claim that companies are racist and sexist if they don't use policies like this. Public figures also agree. Bloomberg's Emily Chang - one of San Francisco's most prominent tech reporters - encouraged adopting explicit reservation systems for women. Even though this is totally illegal in the United States. I'll admit that at the end of the day I'm only one data point and that maybe I fell in with an especially progressive group. But this is what I'm seeing.

yep8883 8y ago

Many studies have found significant bias in favor of women" which studies? I think you are basing your opinion solely on anecdotes from your company/bubble. Women are underrepresented in tech - just go any tech conference and see for yourself. Are women not as smart as men when it comes to tech? Or are there barriers to entry for women?

manfredo 8y ago
This one found a 2:1 hiring bias in favor of women: https://www.pnas.org/content/112/17/5360 https://www.pnas.org/content/112/17/5360
leereeves 8y ago
Here's one that was big news here not long ago: When Google conducted a study recently to determine whether the company was underpaying women and members of minority groups, it found, to the surprise of just about everyone, that men were paid less money than women for doing similar work. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19303039 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19303039
dinglejungle 8y ago
> Are women not as smart as men when it comes to tech? Or are there barriers to entry for women? Those are not the only options.
sisu2019 8y ago
> Are women not as smart as men when it comes to tech? I wouldn't say smart because thats a whole other can of worms but generally less suited, yes absolutely no doubt about it. It's weird but outside of the SV-buzzfeed-vice-huffpost filter bubble it's common knowledge that most women would rather do anything else besides stare at a screen all day and do something that neither involves people or art in any way. It's not exactly rocket science but somehow it has become verboten to point out what everyone across cultures around the world (ex US progressives) and even science can clearly see. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/science-news/8992639/Men-and-women-have-distinct-personalities.html https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/science-news/899263... I will say that in the past what I mentioned has been abused to keep out and belittle women who clearly WERE suited to jobs like this. The excellent movie Hidden Figures shows how wrong and sad that is. But two wrongs don't make a right. Focusing on gender parity is also going to make for lot of miserable women pressured into careers that don't really suit them.

jlebar 8y ago

What about this situation makes you think that white and Asian men are privileged as compared to women? What fraction of companies would you estimate have policies similar to yours?

manfredo 8y ago
I can only talk about my experience in the SF Bay area, but these policies don't seem too out of place. Some of my co-workers go a step further and claim that companies are racist and sexist if they don't use policies like this. Public figures also agree. Bloomberg's Emily Chang - one of San Francisco's most prominent tech reporters - encouraged adopting explicit reservation systems for women. Even though this is totally illegal in the United States. I'll admit that at the end of the day I'm only one data point and that maybe I fell in with an especially progressive group. But this is what I'm seeing.