World is facing a skilled workforce gap in the STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) and continue to face a gender gap in India a survey said on Wednesday.
Nearly 84 percent Indians believe STEM jobs are important to the country’s future, fewer Gen Z (born between 1995 and 2015) response that they felt encouraged to pursue a STEM-based career than millennial (born between 1981 and 1996), said the survey by global technology and engineering company Emerson.
Half of the respondents said STEM careers in India continue to experience a gender gap as women are still lagging behind.
Rise in Workforce gap in India
With technology accelerating many industries, the skilled workforce gap is growing. Nearly 87 percent of Indian respondents said they believe companies should do more to train and prepare their STEM workforce.
“As automation and technology has truly established in our workplaces and schools there’s a growing urgency to prepare the workforce with STEM skills that will be critical to the continued strength of the global economy,” said David N Farr, Chairman and CEO, Emerson.
David N Farr said, “We want to lead the charge by making the strategic investments that will provide both the current and future workforce with the right skill sets to succeed in one of the many tremendous careers made available through STEM from software development to new technologies in manufacturing”.
There is larger support towards boosting STEM awareness and education according to 96% Indians, they consider STEM education important to the country’s future.
Creating an environment where everyone is encouraged to pursue STEM can help address this perception in India and contribute to growing the global STEM workforce, said the survey.
STEM career could have a significant impact on the workforce gap :
Of the women said that they were not encouraged enough to pursue STEM careers in India, 41 percent attributed this missed opportunity in the workforce to stereotypes that STEM careers are for men and 44 percent highlighted a lack of female role models in the field.