Woman geotechnical engineer featured in Globe and Mail news media; shines light on the need for women representation in science and engineering

Globe and Mail news media published an article on the need for women in the fields of science and engineering. The article raises many interesting points including the fact that women in our field are still paid less than men for doing the same job!

As discussed in the article, “the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta (APEGA) conducted a survey in mid-2012 of 87 companies representing 9,635 members. Male engineers in the highest pay category reported an average annual base salary of $214,255, compared with $196,232 for female engineers”. This is a difference of about 10% in salary. Is your company also responsible for such a trend? We encourage you to work towards rectifying this as there is no justification for it.

APEGA’s membership includes only 14% women, a staggeringly low percentage. APEGA has set a goal to raise the percentage of women in its membership to 30% by 2030.

The article also features Jocelyn Grozic, an associate professor in the Department of Civil Engineering, University of Calgary, Canada. Her husband Ed is also a geotechnical engineer. Jocelyn is quoted to say “Being a role model is not so much telling young girls that they should go into engineering. By standing up in the class and being an engineer, the girls see that they can be an engineer.” Jocelyn joined the University of Calgary in 2001, following a postdoctoral fellowship at the Norwegian Geotechnical Institute in Oslo, Norway. She holds a bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering (1994) and a Ph.D. in Geotechnical Engineering (1999) from the University of Alberta. She spent two years in industry and has consulted on various projects during her career. She is a recipient of a number of awards including the 2008 Canadian Geotechnical Colloquium and the 2009 Shamsher Prakash Award.

Is your organization taking action to improve these trends? If so, please let us know in the comments below.

The Globe and Mail news Media article is available here and if you would like further information visit Prof. Grozic’s website  and APEGA’s website.

Source: The Clobe and Mail