A recent survey of over 1,000 working age women has found that three in five believe that the rise of remote work in the pandemic era has made their chances of getting a promotion worse, said CNBC. This is at least partly because 45 percent of women say they have difficulty speaking up in virtual meetings, and one in five women say they have felt ignored or overlooked by colleagues during video calls. While, on the upside, 70 percent say they believe the new environment has given them more flexibility and freedom, it has apparently come at the expense of being seen and heard at work.

The poll bears out what has been reported anecdotally for a number of months now: women feeling marginalized during virtual meetings. However, this is not necessarily a new issue, but, rather, a longstanding one that has moved to the internet. There is already a wealth of academic studies indicating that women are listened to less in meetings, judged more harshly and interrupted more often. The rush to move meetings online has amplified these issues, with several high-powered women reporting that they struggle to get a word in edgewise during calls.