Discrimination and Social Networks: New Industry, Old Problems
It may be hard to remember what life was like before websites like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat were a regular part of our day. Today, hardly an afternoon goes by without people sharing something on a social network or browsing through the statuses and pictures of others.
However, social networking sites like these are relatively new. After all, Facebook was founded only about 10 years ago, and countless other social networking sites have emerged since then. This booming industry thrives on what is fresh and innovative, but it is also struggling with challenges that have affected workplaces across the country for decades, including discrimination.
Tech companies like those mentioned above are facing growing concerns about sexism in the workplace. These companies are often male-dominated, and reports about women being harassed, mistreated or overlooked are becoming more and more common.
Most recently, a female former employee at Twitter filed a discrimination lawsuit citing the company's biased and unfair promotion process. She claims that she felt forced to leave her job as a software engineer for the company because of a complaint she lodged with Twitter's CEO about the alleged discriminatory promotion system. She says her complaint was ignored and her career was derailed, so she felt she had to leave the company.
This is not an isolated incident. Several other females have recently filed lawsuits citing gender bias and discrimination in these companies. For the most part, the companies named in the complaints deny the allegations. However, the multiple discrimination claims combined with the fact that women make up such a small percentage of these companies might suggest that the tech industry may be experiencing some growing pains that are negatively impacting women.
Discrimination in any workplace should not be tolerated. Employees have rights that must be protected and if these rights are violated, employees have the option to take legal action. This is why employers must be very deliberate in how they address discrimination, from laying out clear guidelines regarding prohibited conduct to acting on complaints of unfair treatment. Failure to do this could lead to a costly legal battle and a tarnished reputation.
Source: The Independent, "Sexism and Silicon Valley: now Twitter faces gender discrimination lawsuit from software engineer Tina Huang," Tim Walker, March 23, 2015