| Company officials cite an unfilled pipeline as an obstacle to recruitment; some observers see need for more aggressive recruiting. |
Sidebar: Helpful Resources For Minority Scientists
While those in the industry say the problem is quite real, it is difficult to quantify. Large and small biotechnology companies approached by The Scientist declined to provide breakdowns on the racial and ethnic makeup of their scientific staffs. And the Washington, D.C.-based Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), the industry's main lobbying group, does not collect data on this issue, although BIO president Carl B. Feldbaum says he plans to do so in the future.
Despite this absence of data, Feldbaum is comfortable in charging that "there are too few minority scientists in the industry." But he's quick to add, "I haven't seen any whiff of explicit discrimination. I think [the problem is caused by] the small number of minorities in the general population who have ...
