News Category: BrownBags
UBC BrownBag Discussion - February 29, 2012 
The BrownBag Series is a monthly event organized by the Society of Canadian Women in Science and Technology (SCWIST) whose purpose is to provide a place for learning and discussion of topics to help women in STEM fields advance their careers.
Negotiation Skills
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
12:00-1:30pm
UBC Point Grey Campus
Biodiversity Research Centre (Room 224)
We are happy to welcome Denise Baker as the facilitator of this session. She is the Assistant Dean of the Hari B. Varshney Business Career Centre at UBC’s Sauder School of Business and has extensive experience in career and leadership development.
Did you know that only 12.5% of women negotiate their salaries?
Have you ever NOT asked for something you thought appropriate or even necessary, but instead accepted the “inconvenience” that came with avoiding the uncomfortable conversation?
How do you feel about negotiating? Would you describe it as “trying to win the game” like many men, or do you associate feelings with it that are close to “going to the dentist”?*
In addition to explaining the techniques and etiquette of successful negotiation, Denise will address some of the fears generally associated with negotiation. The goal is to help us get comfortable with asking for what we want – and getting it. With a short exercise, we will start our negotiator training on the spot!
If you would like to join us for our BrownBag Meeting in February, please RSVP to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). For upcoming meetings in this series please visit http://www.scwistevents.ca.
UBC BrownBag Discussion - January 25, 2012
The BrownBag Series is a monthly event organized by the Society of Canadian Women in Science and Technology (SCWIST) whose purpose is to provide a place for learning and discussion of topics to help women in STEM fields advance their careers.
Date: January 25
Time: 12:00-1:30 PM
Place: UBC Point Grey Campus, Biodiversity Research Centre (Room 224)
Topic: Networking (Interactive Workshop)
We are excited to welcome Sabina Nawaz as our guest speaker for this meeting. Sabina is a personal coach and has extensive experience in leadership development. For more information, please visit http://sabinanawaz.com/index.html.
If you would like to join us for our BrownBag Meeting in January, please RSVP to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). For upcoming meetings in this series please visit http://www.scwistevents.ca.
UBC BrownBag Discussion - November 30, 2011
The BrownBag Series is a monthly event organized by the Society of Canadian Women in Science and Technology (SCWIST) whose purpose is to provide a place for learning and discussion of topics to help women in STEM fields advance their careers.
Date: November 30
Time: 12:00-1:30 PM
Place: UBC Point Grey Campus, Biodiversity Research Centre (Room 224)
Topic: Career Transitions
In this meeting, we will talk about the choices and issues to consider at different stages in our careers. Our invited speakers are role models from academia, industry and non-traditional fields who will share their insights into their area and discuss possible challenges and advantages when transitioning from one area to the other.
Dr. Lori Daniels – Assoc. Professor of Forestry, Director of Tree-Ring Lab
Dr. Diane Goodman – Personal Development Coach, Executive Success Programs
Dr. Jennifer Lynett – Technology Transfer Manager, UBC’s University-Industry Liaison Office
Dr. Judy Illes – Professor of Neurology, Canada Research Chair in Neuroethics at UBC, Director of the National Core for Neuroethics at UBC
Dr. Julie Wong – Business Development, Centre for Drug Research and Development
Facilitator: Dr. Gülnur Birol – Senior Educational Strategist at UBC’s Science Centre for Learning and Teaching
If you would like to join us for our BrownBag Meeting in November, please RSVP to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). For upcoming meetings in this series in 2012 please visit http://www.scwistevents.ca.
BrownBag Discussion - UBC and SFU - October 26, 2011
The BrownBag Series is a monthly event organized by whose purpose is to provide a place for learning and discussion of topics to help women in STEM fields advance their careers.
@ UBC
Personal Branding
When: Wednesday October 26, 2011 (and the last Wed. of every month) from 12pm-1:30pm
Location: UBC Point Grey Campus, Biodiversity Research Centre, Room 224
What to bring: Your lunch and your friends/colleagues – guys are invited too!
What to expect: A guest speaker (Oct 26 – Teg Brar), then open discussion and networking. Teg Brar is a personal branding expert and has extensive experience working with individuals to achieve career success. For more information, please visit http://www.scwistevents.ca and Teg’s blog http://www.personalbrandingedge.com/
@ SFU
Who Succeeds in Science and Personal Branding
When: Wednesday October 26, 2011 (and the last Wed. of every month) from 12:30pm-2:30pm Special 2 hour session
Location: SFU Burnaby Campus, TASC 1 Room 9204
What to bring: Your lunch and your friends/colleagues – guys are invited too!
What to expect: A guest speaker (Oct 26 – Malgorzata Dubiel, YWCA Woman of Distinction in Education/ Prof. Nancy Forde (Physics)/ Hiromi Matsui (Dir. of Diversity and Recruitment and Honorary SCWIST member)), then open discussion and networking.
We are looking for volunteer moderators: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
UBC BrownBag Discussion - September 28, 2011
“Who succeeds in science….or why are women still under represented at higher levels and what can I do to avoid this?”
Wednesday, September 28th
12:00-1:00pm
at UBC
Please seclick here for more information.
BrownBag Summary - March 2008 - When is the right time to have children?
Groups of women discuss provocative topics at locations in academia and industry throughout BC. The March 2008 topic was: When is the right time to have children?
By: Michelle LaHaye
Despite the many changes that have happened allowing women to have children without being required to give up their careers, women still feel a strong sense that they will be perceived differently for having taken the time out to have a baby. And there are many questions surrounding the best time to do so to ensure that the disruption to their career is minimised. However, as brought up in the March BrownBag discussion at SFU, there doesn’t seem to be any answer to this question even from women who have had children.
The group did highlight some common themes including the reluctance of women to declare time-off for maternity leave for fear of being judged, that men don’t face the same concerns, and that having a partner with a less demanding job or less commitment makes things much easier. The women also felt that things have changed and that interviewing organisations and companies are sympathetic to women with children. The final part of their discussion centered around the magic number 35, the age after which the women would prefer not to start having children.
BrownBag Summary - February 2008 - Outcomes for internationally trained women
Groups of women discuss provocative topics at locations in academia and industry throughout BC. The February 2008 topic was: What are the prospects and outcomes of internationally trained women in Canada?
By: Michelle LaHaye
February’s topic is an important one not only for women but Canada as a country since the number of foreigners who come here and work every year is large. In 2006 there were just over 250 thousand new permanent residents and of these, nearly 140 000 were economic immigrants: skilled workers, business immigrants, provincial/territorial nominees, and live-in caregivers [1]. In addition there were another 120 000 temporary residents whose primary purpose was to work [1]. These foreign trained professionals fill a significant need in the Canadian economy, making up for a labour shortfall, particularly in health care, information technology, and skilled trades [2]. However, according to Statistics Canada,
Very recent immigrants who have been in Canada five years or less, that is, who landed between 2001 and 2006, had the most difficulty integrating into the labour market, even though they were more likely than the Canadian-born population to have a university education. [3]
One of the problems is that these “Many doctors, lawyers and other professionals struggle to get recognition for their foreign credentials and are forced into unskilled jobs to survive” [2]. And according to the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada, the three most significant impediments to finding work were a lack of Canadian work experience, lack of recognition of foreign credentials and language barriers [3].
Employees at the BC Hydro BrownBag lunch discussion added several details in regards to the issues mentioned above. They said that:
It took more time to find a job than expected and
It was hard to get past experience and education recognized.
Moreover, once they had secured a position, they felt that the first few months were spent just proving their credentials.
In light of these comments, the discussion at BC Hydro made several suggestions that could be applied to any workplace where foreigners are starting work.
Provide explanations of the Canadian Tax, Benefits and Medical systems.
Share information on the background of the new hire to the manager and team members.
Make available resources on language specific to the job such as acronyms.
Institute an effective mentoring system where the mentor or buddy is available and can answer the person’s questions.
Make known what resources are available.
Provide information on career paths.
This is by no means an exhaustive list, but it does highlight some of the things that can be done to ease the transition for foreign trained women. Some of the other challenges faced are more subtle such as workplace cultural differences. For example, in North American high tech positions, there is a general acceptance that extra hours may be required for the job, but no where is this stated explicitly. Also, recognition or promotion is frequently up to the employee. In other cultures this may be the opposite, leading to a misunderstanding of the person’s happiness with their position.
The discussion at SFU examined the topic from the perspective of the reasoning behind a move to Canada, highlighting several factors that will influence the entire employment situation for these foreign trained women. Their reason for moving to Canada might not be economically motivated, but rather family related. Finding success in employment may come second to having or being united with family.
Another interesting point brought up by the group at SFU was that in computer science and engineering, there are proportionally more women in these areas internationally than there are in Canada. This means that the gender imbalance is less pronounced in grad school, for example.
Participants also felt that the expectation from Canadian employers was that a person have Canadian education or local work experience. Without either of these, it makes it very difficult to become established. And in particular, they said, Canadian employers do not give enough recognition to international education.
It is arguably far easier for a person with Canadian education or experience to find work, however, one can hope that as more foreign trained workers are integrated into the Canadian workforce, the more Canadians and immigrants will become knowledgeable about the credentials foreigners hold and will in turn be able to give the credit where it is due.
[1] Facts and Figures 2006: Immigration overview, Statistics Canada, http://www.cic.gc.ca/English/resources/statistics/facts2006/index.asp, June 2007
[2] Attracting skilled immigrants: The struggle to lure foreign trained workers, CBC News, http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/immigration/skilledimmigrants.html, Sept. 2004
[3] Canada’s immigrant labour market, The Daily, Statistics Canada, http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/070910/d070910a.htm, Sept. 2007
BrownBag Summary - January 08 - How do students/employees view instructors/managers based on gender?
Groups of women discuss provocative topics at locations in academia and industry throughout BC. The January 2008 topic was: How do students and employees view instructors and managers based on gender?
By: Michelle LaHaye
This topic made me reflect back to my undergraduate studies in engineering. Initially there were only two female faculty members and students’ comments about them were certainly less than complimentary. Over the years as new women joined the faculty the attitudes became more positive, however I am left wondering how much of the students’ initial judgments were based upon the individual’s proficiency at teaching and how much upon the fact that they were female in a nearly all male faculty.
When this question was posed at the BrownBag Lunch discussion at UBC several perspectives were presented from students and faculty. What stood out from this discussion was the wide range of experiences. One faculty member told how her female students will compliment her on her outfits. She doesn’t mind the compliments but knows that this would not happen if she were a man and is concerned that female instructors are criticised more harshly and are expected to be more than just smart and knowledgeable.
Another woman who had in the past instructed at a school told how she found that students would be far more critical of the women instructors, waiting and even looking for them to make a mistake, while with the male instructors, there was an atmosphere of respect from the students from the moment the class began.
One of the students in the discussion could not comment on how students would view female faculty since she had never had a woman instructor. This brings again to light the need for role models as she was unsure how to behave in her classes where she is the only female as well as demonstrating to the male students that women are as capable as men in these areas.
At NRC-IFCI, the facilitator presented some data from a study done on gender and teaching. In the study, the researchers found that the professor’s gender did not significantly affect a student’s performance [1]. Results of the study indicated that the effects of both student gender and instructor gender were of little practical meaning, accounting for only five percent of the variance in student satisfaction and overall performance. The group discussion agreed with this data, saying that their interest did not depend on the gender of their instructors. In addition, they said that instructors of either gender served as role models.
In addition they touched on some reoccurring themes related to leadership and women. It may seem obvious when stated but is somehow frequently forgotten in practice: men and women supervisors have different styles. But different does not equal bad. And although the styles might be different the skills required are not. Another theme was the issue of whether women are trying to act like men and men trying to act like women. People need to act like themselves and not assign gender to their actions. As they stated, “The only way to be powerfully successful, whether you’re a man or a woman, is to be who you are.”
When asked at the BC Hydro discussion about the perception of leaders and managers based on gender a few noteworthy statistics were mentioned.
50% of executive at BC Hydro are women
About 40% of next level of senior managers are women
In particular one attendee said that one of the factors for deciding to work at BC Hydro was the number of women in leading roles. This clearly indicates the importance of having women in leadership roles in a company for attracting new hires.
The group at BC Hydro then came up with a list of things needed to increase the number of female leaders.
Mentor the women that are out there to encourage and support them.
Avoid labelling leadership styles as masculine or feminine.
Understand the behaviours and traits of good management.
Increase the number of women in technical, engineering and trades positions. And showcase the women in these positions as role models.
Recognize and accept success, including self promotion.
On an interesting note, all three discussions highlighted at some point the positive aspects of how women manage and instruct and how these are valuable and much needed skills. Women are detail-oriented, excellent at organisation, planning, communication and relationships. Given equal opportunities women will excel in leadership roles. In particular, women can be effective leaders for implementing change and this is an excellent opportunity for women to demonstrate their abilities to lead. Ultimately, real power comes from within and should never be confused with the official position.
[1] F.Hoffman, P. Oreopoulos, A Professor Like Me: The Influence of Instructor Gender on College Achievement, NBER Working Paper No. 13182, June 2007.
BrownBag Series - November 2007 - Having it all - Summary
Groups of women discuss provocative topics at locations in academia and industry throughout BC. The November 2007 topic was: It’s possible to have it all – a satisfying career, happy family life, and time for yourself.
Having it all – is this a true possibility or a delusion? The word “all” includes a successful career (and how do we define success – hefty pay cheque, prestigious title, travelling all over the world, 80 hour work weeks?), a great marriage, kids and still time for oneself. The problem is that all of these things take time, effort and energy. It is obvious that having a job takes time and a career will take even more. A marriage-like relationship also takes effort. It doesn’t happen by magic and who can deny that children are not energy consuming. And in all of that where is the time for self? So what exactly does “having it all” mean? Do women have unrealistic expectations of themselves, where they believe that they can achieve perfection in these three areas of their lives, or does “having it all” really mean sacrificing a little bit of everything in order to get some of each but never really having any one of them fully? Many of these questions have been raised by women who have struggled with balancing a career and family while finding time for themselves as can be quickly found by googling “having it all” [1], [2], [3], [4] and [5].
In November SCWIST’s BrownBag Lunch series addressed this topic asking women in science and technology-related careers or study areas what it meant to them. Three discussions took place at BC Hydro, UBC, and NRC. Each discussion had a different focus, reflecting the different groups as well as various opinions in society. The general theme and consensus was that “having it all” was possible and would depend on a woman’s personality and her stage in life.
BC Hydro brought in a speaker to address the myriad issues of finding a balance between career, family and self. Sheron Stone from Shepell FGI is the Employee Assistance Program provider for BC Hydro. She highlighted some key points including:
– When you are out of balance, the emotional response is the same no matter what part of your life is out of balance. – What defines a balanced life is different for different people. – Need to break down goals into small achievable steps with short timelines. – Be careful of doing too much. – Self-Care needs to be a high priority. If you are not taking care of yourself, then how can you expect to take care of anyone else?The discussion at UBC brought up the point that society has raised women to believe they can have it all however the reality is much more difficult to achieve. A professor at UBC proposed the two-thirds idea: you can’t have everything, all the time, but you can have two out of three at any given time. However, as the women discussed, balancing work, relationships and self time is difficult and is different for individual women as some will be satisfied with a more career-oriented life whereas others will prefer to be more family-focused.
At NRC the group talked about making sure the work-life balance included finding time for the partner in the relationship, that spending time with children does not have to mean planned activities but simply being with them is important, and not forgetting one’s priorities. They also raised the important point that even single people find balancing work and life to be challenging and therefore not having a family does not necessarily make it any easier. One woman said that she did “have it all” but then mentioned that the important question is if her family thinks she has done it well.
Ultimately that is the most important aspect: the people – you and your family in whatever shape it exists. If you and your family are happy then you have probably found that balance and can indeed “have it all”.
[1] “Another view of having it all”
[2] “Having it all”
[3] “Having it all”
[4] “Having it all: A mother’s thoughts about balance”
[5] “Why ‘having it all’ still means ‘doing it all’”
BrownBag Series - May 2007 - Impact of increase of women in scientific research - Summary
Groups of women discuss provocative topics at locations in academia and industry throughout BC. The May topic is: What would the impact be on research direction of more women in science?
Locations: NRC and UBC
By Michelle La Haye
Introduction
Considering last month’s topic (Hard science doesn’t come naturally to women) this is a nice way to round up the year of Brown Bag Lunch discussions. Something which comes to mind immediately from this topic is the particular impact women can have on health research. As an example, it was not until a woman, Dr. Bernadine Healy, became director of the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) that a particular major change in clinical studies was achieved. In 1991 the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) was created to investigate hormone replacement therapy in postmenopausal women. Prior to 1991, studies were severely lacking in that area. In fact, even before the studies were completed it turned out that one of the widely accepted hormone replacement treatments was actually to the detriment of women’s health by increasing the risk of breast cancer, heart attacks, strokes and clots [1]. In addition to establishing the WHI, during her tenure at NIH, Dr. Healy established a policy where funding for clinical trials was only granted to those that included both men and women when what was being studied affected both. According to her colleagues at Johns Hopkins, Dr. Healy was “someone who often challenged conventional wisdom and created new directions in research” [2]. This is a prime example of how women can affect the direction of research.
Because when they take on [leadership] roles, they often bring a fresh approach to situations that have persisted for years. From their particular vantage as women, they question received wisdom, look at familiar ideas from new angles, and sometimes ask if there’s not a better way to do things. [3]
– Linda Babcock and Sara LascheverIt is inarguable that women bring different perspectives, challenges and desires to any environment, whether it be research, high tech or family. An alternative view on research can only bring about new ideas which will lead to more and better research. The discussions at NRC and UBC this month focused around these ideas. To borrow a quotation from the group at NRC, “The process of knowledge production is becoming more reflexive and affects at the deepest levels of what shall count as “good science” Gibbons Michael et al 1994.
[1] NHLBI Stops Trial of Estrogen Plus Progestin Due to Increased Breast Cancer Risk, Lack of Overall Benefit, NIH News release, July 2002, http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/whi/pr_02-7-9.pdf.
[2] Biography Dr. Bernadine Healy, http://www.nlm.nih.gov/changingthefaceofmedicine/physicians/biography_145.html
[3] L. Babcock, S. Laschever, “Women Don’t Ask: Negotiation and the Gender Divide”, Princeton University Press, New Jersey, 2003.
Summaries
NRC
At NRC the discussion started by tackling the issue straight on: examining the difference between SEX, as the biological differences between male and female compared to GENDER, as the societal construct of the difference in the roles for the male and female members of society. They said that:
– A homogenous society or group will have more narrow ideas of research rather than a diverse group.They discussed the following question, if Gender does have an impact, what type of impact do women have in shaping research directions?
– Equality is not about just about numbers (50/50) but about giving equal opportunities for both genders to lead the research. More focus on the individual rather than the sex/gender of the person.And would this shaping be beneficial or detrimental to world science research?
– Men and women are different and because of that there may be different impacts in research if there were more women, different but not necessarily bad.They summarised their discussion with the following: “the play of diversity in research, including diversity in gender, race, etc., is becoming more and more a necessity when pursuing excellence in current and future project demands.”
UBC
The discussion at UBC came from a different angle, looking at the impact of women researchers on the environment research is performed in and the feel of doing research. They said that changes would come in the form of:
– More accommodating work schedules allowing for family and childcare concerns – More networking and collaborating leading to new areas of research and new ideas – A stronger focus on topics related to women – An acceptance of women as researchers without labeling them as bossy or bitchy when they are successfulParticipants felt that when more women are in research and in higher positions, change will be easier to facilitate and will positively impact everyone.
BrownBag Series - April 2007 - Hard science doesn’t come naturally to women - Summary
Groups of women discuss provocative topics at locations in academia and industry throughout BC. The April topic is: Hard science doesn’t come naturally to women – Discuss.
While trying to put together this month’s summary, an article I had read about Carnegie Mellon’s new approach to attracting students, in particular women, to the computing science program, kept coming back to me. In the end I couldn’t find the original article, however I found another one with a particular quote that struck me. It relates well to this question of whether women are suited to “hard science”.
The article talks about how Carnegie Mellon noticed a decrease in enrolment in their computer science program and decided to make changes in order to attract new students. The associate dean for undergraduate science in the school of computing science, Allan Fisher, was instrumental in shaping many of the changes at Carnegie Mellon. One of his comments cited in the article struck me as one of many pointers as to why it may be perceived that women are not suited to hard science. His comment is as follows:
Women will experience a problem or not understand something and they will blame themselves. Men will experience a problem, not understand something, and they will blame you. The women are far more likely to conclude that they just don’t have what it takes, lose interest and disappear.
http://www.post-gazette.com/regionstate/19990820compwomen4.asp
This sounds very much to me like a self-realising scenario. If women conclude they “don’t have what it takes”, i.e. “hard science doesn’t come naturally to women,” then they will not pursue this hard science and the numbers will continue to support the false idea that women don’t have what it takes, exactly the attitude that women in science and technology-related fields all over the world are fighting to counter.
This month there were discussions at BC Hydro, NRC, Douglas College and SFU. One of the common themes from the various locations was that women still take on more family responsibilities and therefore don’t have the time to pursue “hard science” as much as men. My favourite comment was that women went into science fields based on not conforming to societal expectations. (This is something I like to do frequently!)
Finally this quote from NRC covers the most important aspect of women in science and technology; we can all do more.
The consensus was that hard sciences are equally difficult to women and men but that there are other external factors that influence a woman’s decision to enter the field of hard science. We can all do more to encourage and support girls and women to study the sciences.
BC Hydro
- attendees: 9
Factors that influence choosing science as field of study:
• Innate ability
• Family expectations
• Teacher’s viewpoint
• Societal trends
• Role models
The influencing factors came mostly during middle school or high school. These included both positive influences from role models as well as negative ones from society.
NRC
- attendees: 20
Societal expectations of women:
• Most participants agreed that women feel the pressure to juggle their own desires with what society expects of them.
• Cultural differences play a role. Some cultures are more accepting of women in non-traditional roles whereas others consider a woman’s place to be in the home.
Career choices:
• Women make some career choices based on family considerations rather than just interest or ability.
• Fewer women employed or studying hard sciences should not be interpreted as support for the argument that hard sciences do not come easily to women.
External pressures:
• A lack of sufficient day care can influence a woman to opt out of studying or working in hard sciences. Again, this has nothing to do with ability.
Research on the topic:
• Studies have been done that show the calibre of women who are at the top levels of academia or research is higher than that of men.
• It was suggested that this was perhaps because it is only the “top notch” ones who make it past the obstacles or who decide to sacrifice other areas of their lives to focus on a career in the “hard sciences”.
Douglas College
- attendees: 2
1. They dispute the argument that hard science doesn’t come naturally to women.
2. And they argue that even if hard sciences do not come as easily to women as it does to men, this should not be a basis for discrimination.
SFU
- attendees: 7
• According to a researcher at SFU, Dr. Doreen Kimura, there are physical differences in the brains of women and men which influence the way that each think/function. However, this doesn’t imply that hard science is more difficult for women.
• Suppose men and women think differently or approach hard science differently. Who is to say that the way women think or do things is wrong? The framework for hard science has been established by men, so women may be at a disadvantage but that only means that hard science needs women’s perspectives even more.
• The book The Mind has no Sex, argues that the links sociologists make between the structure of the brain and how women and men do things differently is actually very weak. And that those arguments if evaluated using “hard science” would probably never be used as conclusive.
BrownBag Series - March 2007 - Sexism or funny? - Summary
Groups of women discuss provocative topics at locations in academia and industry throughout BC. The March topic is: Is it sexism or is it funny? Here’s a summary of the discussion from the different locations. Thanks to Michelle La Haye for compiling the March BrownBag data.
Locations: UVic, UBC, BC Hydro, NRC, SFU
Summary
At first glance, this month’s topic seemed to be obvious but once the discussions got under way, what once seemed obvious became much murkier. Humour in one of its forms is about pointing out the differences between people but when does that go too far? When does it become demeaning or belittling? And finally, when does it become harassment?
These questions are answered by the different groups in several common ways. All groups ended up by saying that a joke may be appropriate but it depends on the people, how well they know each other, the setting in which it takes place and ultimately on personality. The important common theme to draw from this month’s discussion is that in the end, people don’t want to offend others.
University of Victoria
Attendees: 4
“Jokes or comments that some consider funny are inappropriate in the workplace or technical conferences.”
Academia is one of the better workplace environments – However inappropriate comments are more often made at technical conferences and even by keynote speakers – Sexism is more often encountered as exclusion from “social” events
Training – Not only men, but women need training on how to deal with sexist jokes or comments in the workplace – Workshops on how to move the focus to the offender could be very beneficial
University of British Columbia
Attendees: 14
“How do you deal with it without making it an issue or making yourself out to be flogging a dead horse?”
When is it a joke and when is it inappropriate? – Depends on the people involved, for example within a group of only women it could be funny – Depends on how well the people know each other, in that case the intention is clear – Depends on the formality of the session, for example at a conference it would be inappropriate
How do you respond? – Can you be assertive? – Will responding disrupt the good time? – Try to make a joke out of it – Turn the focus back onto the offender – Ask what the person meant by the comment – Important to think of some strategies as the moment will be over too quickly before you can think of something to say
In all cases, it is important to always use language that is respectful and polite.
BC Hydro
Attendees: 14 (12 women, 2 men)
“Harassment is often a patterned behaviour that can lead to detrimental consequences or severe enough impact.”
In the workplace – Respect for women in the workplace had improved over the last 20 years – Most attendees felt BC Hydro was a good place to work for women but there still exists some more subtle discrimination – Even outside the office, when on business, must always be respectful, however can differentiate between office environment and field environment – It is the manager’s role to setup a good working environment by modelling appropriate behaviour. The manager needs to keep communication open and respond to situations.
When and how to react – Let the person know that a certain behaviour is inappropriate by either speaking to them directly or going to the manager – Can start by using humour to point out the person’s error in judgement. Be non-confrontational. Use a private discussion about the event to clarify why it was inappropriate.
National Research Council
Attendees: 22 (18 women, 4 men)
“The kinds of things that evoke laughter from you may not appear funny to your friends, neighbours or colleagues at work. Our sense of humour is as unique as we are individuals.”
Whose responsibility is it when someone takes offence to a joke you tell or something you say? – Responsibility is on the person telling the joke or making the comment to be aware – Also, responsibility of the person finding it offensive to clarify the issue
How do we know if we are “crossing the acceptable line” of what is considered appropriate or tasteful humour? – Depends on the context (work, social, familiarity of members, size of group etc.) – If you are unsure that something could offend someone, don’t say it
What is the role of gender and culture? – Depends on the individual. Things that play a role include
o Personal preferences, different life styles and moods
o Age
o Sex
o Religion
o Different levels of tolerance
o Generational (age) due to a change in standards, evolution
o Reiteration of the same joke
o Familiarity with the language in which the jokes are made
o Size of the group
o Cultural or else multicultural factor
o Personal judgment
o Level of familiarity with each of the members in a group
Why should we be concerned about jokes in the workplace or at school? – Perception that older generations make more jokes that could be offensive than younger generations – A joke is a message from the individual or a reflection of society’s issues (not all jokes should be avoided) – Sometimes jokes bring some truth to them and people sometimes don’t like to hear truths – Worrying too much about the issue can make the workplace or social environment uncomfortable – Jokes can make our lives more enjoyable or bearable
Simon Fraser University
Attendees: 4
“Women are different by nature and wouldn’t put down someone for the sake of a joke.”
What is a joke and when is it sexist? – No clear consensus on what constituted a joke and what was sexism – If it offends then it is not funny
Are women’s natures different? – Are women more easily offended? – Do men not take things so personally? – Women don’t want to put down people, so wouldn’t make offensive jokes
Is there a perception that a joke about a woman is sexist because being a woman is somehow “negative” whereas it is “better” to be a man? – This was a difficult question and left a food for thought.
How does culture affect allowable jokes? – Two women from different backgrounds said the men they have worked with would not make jokes when women were part of the group, they didn’t know what would happen if there were no women – Academic culture is also more sensitive to the issues and none of the group had been in a situation where inappropriate behaviour occurred.
Wed Feb 01
