[webehere]

Problem exists that CAN affect women != women's problem. Problem that ONLY affects women == women's problem. Wish that distinction was made more often. That the 20% figure for women is so consistent (and a lie I might add, I doubt 10% represents DBAs, and I bet that the PR and HR departments have closer to 100% females) is surely SOMETHING.

My girlfriend is a lawyer and she is quitting for much the same reasons - the long hours, the fact that to get promoted you need to get clients which you need to be part of the boy's club to do etc etc.

The thing, is MANY of her male peers feel the same way.

The biggest difference IMHO is that women have more guts than men and actually will leave. Most men ARE their jobs, so they stay DESPITE how terrible it is.

Women, often with more rounded senses of self esteem, go "fuck this shit - I'm Audi".

I'm not sure how that is a good thing for men OR women, and I'm not sure how to fix it. "Make women miserable" seems, to me at least, the worst outcome, but really, that's the only way to address the issue of ratios, without addressing the underlying issues.