On the surface universal equality might seem fair. However, detailed analysis can sometimes reveal examples where forcing equality would be unfair.
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One study, that looked at gender bias in the hiring of US university faculty in mathematical (STEM) subjects, revealed such an example. 70% of the STEM jobs in the study were held by men. However, when they looked for hiring bias they discovered it was in favour of women not men. Any woman applying for a vacancy was far more likely to get hired. For example, a woman applying for a faculty position in electrical engineering was nearly three times as likely to get hired as an otherwise identical man.
The authors were quick to point out that their one study doesn’t prove there is no gender bias against women anywhere in the STEM fields. However, it does highlight the importance of digging into the detail to understand high-level inequalities better before forming any conclusions.
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