Discrimination In The Tech Industry: Is There An App For That?

Employment discrimination based on gender, race, and other protected factors can exist in any industry, however, certain industries tend to favor certain types of employees. Whether that favor is intentional or not, it can often lead to unlawful discrimination or harassment against certain demographics in the workplace.

The tech industry has traditionally been dominated by Caucasian men for years. Despite women proving how valuable and successful they can be in important roles in tech companies, there is often bias in hiring and in the workplace. Much of this bias against women and racial minorities may be unconscious though it still makes it difficult for many individuals to find jobs or feel comfortable in their jobs in technology companies. For example, a recent survey spoke with 200 women in the tech industry and found the following trends:

• 75 percent received questions in interviews regarding their marital status, family, or plans for children;

• 90 percent witnessed some form of sexist or biased behavior at tech networking events or conferences;

• 88 percent had questions that should have been directed at them instead asked of male colleagues;

• 87 percent experienced offensive comments from male coworkers;

• 84 percent were informed they were “too aggressive” when they did speak up at work; and

• 60 percent were subjected to unwanted sexual advances in the workplace, more than half of which were from superiors.

While the above survey focuses on discrimination and bias against women in the tech industry, there is also an imbalance in racial minority employees in many tech companies.

An App To Decrease Bias

Many insiders may acknowledge that bias in the tech industry is unconscious, however, there still need to be fixes to remedy the issue and give talented women and minorities the chance to shine in tech jobs. One engineer has developed an app to help eliminate unintentional bias and discrimination at the hiring stage to help people get their foot in the door in all different industries. The engineer, a black woman, had the idea after struggling to get jobs despite an impressive educational background and years of development experience.

Blendoor is her app that allows companies in the hiring process to upload resumes without a picture, name, or other information that may indicate race or gender. This can lead to more equal offerings of interviews among minorities. However, once in an interview, the companies will have to work on their own to eliminate biased or even unlawful questions of job candidates. In addition, tech companies should work to develop and enforce policies that encourage fair and unbiased treatment in the workplace.

Discuss Your Case With A Florida Employment Discrimination Attorney

If you believe that you have been the victim of any type of unlawful discrimination or harassment during the hiring process or in your place of work, you should discuss your rights with a skilled Florida employment law attorney as soon as possible. At the law office of Robert S. Norell, P.A., we have helped employees across all different industries seek recourse for unlawful treatment. Call today at 305-405-9243 for assistance.