Study: Differences in tenure status and feelings of fairness in hiring and promotions among male and female faculty in Canadian universities

Achieving tenure is a key goal in the career progression of faculty in universities, bringing with it increased job security and higher earnings. A new study released today shows a growing share of tenured positions in Canadian universities are held by women. However, gender parity has not yet been achieved.

In 2019, women held 37% of tenured positions in Canadian universities, up from 14% in 1990. This may be explained by the increase in the share of women in academia, with women accounting for 41% of university faculty in 2019. That said, women in full-time faculty positions are still less likely than men to be tenured: 63% of female faculty were tenured in 2019, compared with 75% of male faculty.

Using data from the University and College Academic Staff System and the Survey of Postsecondary Faculty and Researchers (2019), the study found that most, but not all, of the gender difference in tenure could be explained by differences in highest level of education attained and time since obtaining the highest degree.

In 2019, 75% of female faculty had a doctoral degree, lower than the proportion of male faculty at 82%. This is partly related to the higher concentration of women (22%) working as faculty in health-based fields relative to men (14%). Health and related disciplines are less likely to require a doctoral degree to be employed as university faculty. Women were also younger: 34% of women faculty were less than 45 years of age, while the same was true for 27% of men.

There is evidence to suggest that the proportion of women faculty in tenured positions will continue to increase. For example, in 2019, the proportion of tenure-track positions held by women (49%) almost reached parity with men, up from 33% in 1990.

Women's time to tenure is affected by parental leave

In general, the path to obtaining tenure took longer when work was interrupted by parental leave, though this was only the case for women faculty. The tenure clock, a meter that counts down the probationary period before a professor becomes tenured, is adjusted or stopped during leaves. In 2019, 19% of tenure-track women faculty who took parental leave were able to obtain tenure in less than five years, compared with 36% of women who did not take this type of leave. There were no significant differences related to time to tenure between men who took parental leave and those who did not.

Female faculty less likely to feel that hiring and promotions are fair and equitable at their institution

The study also examined perceptions of fairness within universities in hiring and promotions. Faculty members were asked whether they thought that decisions related to hiring and promotions at their institution were fair and equitable.

Most faculty (64%) in universities agreed that hiring decisions were fair and equitable, with about 16% disagreeing with this statement. Negative perceptions around hiring and promotions, however, were more common among female faculty. Women (20%) were almost twice as likely as men (12%) to disagree that hiring was fair and equitable at their institution. Similarly, 23% of women disagreed that promotions were fair and equitable, while 14% of men expressed this view.

Along with women, other groups were also less likely to feel that hiring and promotions were fair and equitable, such as faculty members with a disability and faculty members belonging to a sexual minority. For example, close to one-third of faculty with a disability (31%) disagreed that promotions were fair and equitable at their institution, compared with 17% of those without disability.

The Daily