The expectation of a woman to strike a work-life balance

The event was opened by Slovak MEP Miriam Lexmann who started off the discussion with her perspective as a policymaker. She spoke about the gender pay gap, explaining that it all boils down to work-life balance and gender stereotypes still existing when it comes to the home.

“Women are choosing lesser paying jobs below their capacity because those give them more time to spend with their kids,” she explained.

Biomedical scientist and PhD candidate Christine Gatt also looked at work-life balance as one of the factors discouraging women from pursuing a long-term career in science.

“A lot of women leave their careers to juggle family responsibilities,” Gatt said.

This points to an urgent need in family-friendly policies that support both men and women in balancing work and home life.

Representation is key

Like any inequalities, pushing for visible representation is key to ensuring positive progress. This is something that astronomy PhD candidate at the University of Cambridge Stephanie Buttigieg is set on tackling.

Buttigieg is half way through her PhD and in tandem to her impressive research on supermassive black holes within cosmological simulations, she has built a presence on social media dedicated to making astronomy accessible as well as increasing representation of women in science. Her goal is to be relatable to young girls and women and encourage them to dream big.

During her intervention, she explained that children are exposed to stereotypes at a very young age both subtly and directly. From the misconception that girls aren’t good at maths, to the lack of female scientists outlined in school syllabi, young girls are almost instantly put at a disadvantage when it comes to taking an interest in STEM subjects.

“I had incredible lecturers but most were male. This is sending a message to girls that there is no one like them here, this isn’t their place.”

Therefore, she continued, there needs to be more visibility and social media is a very powerful tool for that.

To highlight the power of representation, Buttigieg explained that both her and her colleague do science outreach through social media. The majority of both their audiences are male but the difference in those majorities is staggering.

Buttigieg’s average viewership is made up of 60% of males and 40% of females while her colleague’s is made up of a whopping of 80% and sometimes 90% of males.

“This shows that just by being a woman speaking about science, women are more attracted to watching it. That’s why we need more relatable role models.”

However, being in the public eye is not easy.

“Your mistakes will be analysed and they will be used to discredit your expertise and achievements,” Buttigieg said, drawing from her own experience from a minor mistake she made while on local TV not long ago.

She ended her intervention with a message to policymakers and the media: “Treat women with respect, make sure they are given a platform they deserve and make sure their work is highlighted so that it reaches young girls.”

“Representation is not just about visibility, it’s about changing the narrative.”

Gatt shared similar sentiments, explaining that two major challenges that stunt women’s presence in scientific fields are representation and credit.

Female scientists receive less funding, fewer research opportunities and lower salaries than their male counterparts, Gatt highlighted.

“On top of that, their work lacks visibility and recognition. It is  sometimes it is even overlooked or worse, credited to male scientists.”

A clear example, she continued, is the Nobel Prize. Since it was established in 1901, only 25 women have been awarded the Nobel Prize in science. Last year, all the awardees were men.

“I find it hard to believe that in the whole world, there was not one single female scientist who provided a significant contribution to science.”

All of this intensifies the scrutiny faced by female scientists that leaves them constantly trying to prove that they’re worthy of their opportunities.

From an educator’s point of view, Annemarie Grech shared that as part of her training in early childhood education at an all-girls school, she was not trained to teach science despite this being one of the duties of a primary school teacher.

“It’s fine just read from the book, just show them a picture and tell them to label it,” she recounted being told, “that’s the way it has always been portrayed,” she continued.

Grech highlighted the importance of teaching science in an inclusive and engaging way, adding that young girls’ curiosity should be fostered and encouraged.  It’s also important for them to see female teachers in secondary school leading these subjects.

Underfunding in female-related health conditions and how this changing

Inequalities in representation lead to less importance on female-centric issues. Due to this, research on female reproductive health has been historically ignored and neglected. However, as patients have become more aware and educated, the medical field has also invested more in tackling and understanding these issues.

Panelist and reproductive health specialist Maria Petra Agius exemplified endometriosis, explaining that the condition impacts one in every 10 women worldwide.

Throughout the years, the interest in endometriosis has increased, Agius said. Healthcare professionals are becoming more aware of how debilitating this condition can be, noting that the chronic pain might mean that women sometimes need to take days off work and school.

Meanwhile, the condition can also impact fertility and the medical understanding of this has also improved throughout the years.

Agius explained that there has been investment in different imaging modalities that help diagnose the condition earlier on.  Meanwhile, new medication has recently been developed through the use of a multidisciplinary team made up of gyanaecologists, bowel surgeons, psychologists, dietitions and more.

All of this has helped significantly in the treatment of endometriosis with progress on the rise thanks to women and researchers like Agius.

How the EU helps

Policy officer within the EC’s Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) unit Senem Sanal-Erginel shed light on the work the EU is doing to increase the presence of women in science and research. The MSCA is the EU’s flagship program for training, mobility and career development of researchers in all stages of their careers.

The MSCA has had exceptional success in attracting female researchers. In fact, they make up 44% of MSCA fellows – well above the average of the research populations. This number climbs to 46% when looking at doctoral candidates funded under the MSCA programs.

Under Horizon Europe the MSCA adopted a more gender-friendly and inclusive approach that pays attention to gender mainstreaming at all levels. This specifically ensures gender balance in the selection panels by providing training on inclusive gender biases in remuneration and selection processes.

Through Horizon Europe, the commission introduced further provisions like increased family allowances to address work-life balance issues and encourage higher participation of women in research.

“These provisions are bearing results,” Sanal-Erginel said.

In addition to these provisions, the Commission holds several outreach events that are open to the public and specifically celebrate female researchers who have benefitted from the MSCA.

Stay tuned for more content from this enriching discussion.

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The articles hereunder form part of a content series called Ewropej. This is a multi-newsroom initiative part-funded by the European Parliament to bring the work of the EP closer to the citizens of Malta and keep them informed about matters that affect their daily lives. These articles reflect only the authors’ views. The European Parliament is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information these articles contain.