Job Tenure and Gendered Perception of Workplace Challenges in Gendered Organizations: Computer Science, Engineering, and Mathematics Fields

The authors examine the gendered perceptions of workplace challenges in the male-dominated fields of computer science, engineering, and mathematics (CSEM). Using novel qualitative and quantitative data from an online survey of 3,556 cisgender CSEM professionals, the authors explore how women and men differently perceive workplace challenges in domains that are central to gendered organizational theory. In stark contrast to prior research that suggests science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) professionals embrace purportedly meritocratic and “gender-neutral” cultural schemas, the present findings reveal that women in CSEM are significantly more likely than men to perceive workplace challenges across multiple areas and the biggest gender disparities are reported in the recognition of structural barriers. The authors further investigate how job tenure moderates these gendered perceptions. Longer tenure is linked to lower perceptions of workplace challenges among men, whereas women’s perceptions of structural barriers remain consistent over time, and reports of interpersonal difficulties become more frequent as tenure increases. These findings suggest that tenure, rather than buffering women from inequality, may amplify gendered burdens, reinforcing disparities in how organizational experiences are seen and navigated. By highlighting both the persistence of gendered perceptions and the role of job tenure, this study advances understanding of how inequality is perceived and reproduced within contemporary STEM workplaces.