As a woman in the science field (M.S. Toxicology, PhD,Pharmacology/Toxicology and I work at Pacific Northwest Nat'l Labs), I strongly suspect your treatment by the 3 men on the new project is because you are a "technician" not because you are a woman. When you get your PhD you'll find things are very different. Even as a postdoc people will start asking for you input, if only to teach you something about what you know/don't know.
I also suspect the way you are treated is because they know that you think the "company has questionable practices" - believe me, they know. They probably think you are wrong/ignorant and that's why you feel that way.
You are a junior technician working toward a PhD. There is a very definite "class" distinction in the sciences - and class is defined by letters behind your name and years of experience. You've got neither. I suspect your attitude is known and your inexperience combined with that attitude have people's backs up.
That said, I have some amazing stories about being very badly treated by the "old guard", but most of those guys are gone now. (A man once announced that a meeting couldn't begin until the "token woman" showed up - I was sitting right there and he was referring to another woman on the team, I don't know if it's more offensive to be thought of as the token woman, or not even worthy of that!)