Each year, 265 million in public funding goes toward
The Canada Research Chairs Program, a program that funds top researchers at Canadian universities. Now, Science Minister Kirsty Duncan is
threatening to defund its chairs for not meeting "diversity targets".
The decision came after Minister Duncan took offense at the unequal number of chairs held by women. "There were two times more men nominated (for research chair positions) than women" Duncan exclaimed during in an interview with the Associated Press.
Government funding will be withheld until universities nominate an equal number of women. But aren't universities progressive strongholds, bereft of bias and bastions of equality? Of all places, it seems unlikely that university faculties are actively holding women back.
As of December 2016, only 30 per cent of the funded chair positions were held by women. However, between 2000 and 2015,
31 per cent of applicants for the jobs were from women. Based on these numbers it would be impossible to argue that sexist hiring practices are the cause of the gender imbalance in research chairs.
Fewer women hold research chair positions because fewer women apply; it's that simple.
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