As we mark International Women’s Day 2024, it’s essential to reflect on the progress and challenges in promoting gender equality within the tech industry. The recently released Tech Talent Charter’s annual ‘Diversity in Tech’ report for 2024 unveils the state of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) within the sector, emphasising the need for collective efforts to bridge current gender gaps.
The report, compiled from data provided by over 700 UK tech signatories employing nearly 977,000 professionals, brings attention to both positive developments and remaining hurdles in fostering diversity. Beyond the familiar narrative of gender disparity, the study delves into various aspects of representation, including disability in tech, socioeconomic diversity, trans representation, and gender and ethnic diversity in software engineering and senior tech roles.
While gender inequality has been a longstanding challenge, the report reveals that women and non-binary individuals now make up 29% of the UK tech workforce, indicating a modest 1% increase on the previous year. Although this percentage represents the highest recorded since the initiation of data collection in 2020, a closer examination of specific tech roles exposes a concerning trend. Only 20% of software engineers and 21% of senior tech role holders identify as women or non-binary, signifying a 1% decline on the previous year.
These statistics, surpassing the UK tech industry average, offer a glimmer of hope and suggest that achieving greater diversity in tech is within reach for Tech Talent Charter’s signatories, irrespective of company size, sector, or location.
However, the report also warns that 1 in 3 women in tech are considering leaving their current roles. This raises concerns that any progress made may be jeopardised, compounded by challenges in achieving equality measures, including diversity in senior positions and overall retention rates across the industry. Simultaneously, reports indicate a worsening gender pay gap, with projections suggesting a daunting 300 years to close this gap within the tech industry.
At Humand Talent, we are working on narrowing the gender gap in the tech industry with each day. One of our core values is to champion diversity and inclusion throughout our hiring processes and tech community events. This International Women’s Day, let us invest in women, and accelerate progress across the tech industry.
From the UN: “Investing in women and championing gender equality turbocharges a future where everyone in society can thrive, creating a world of boundless opportunity and empowerment for all.”
