Women are expected to make up 47.2% of the workforce by 2024. However, the tech industry is still lagging behind the curve. Only 26% of computing jobs are held by women. Of these women, only 3% are African-American, 6% are Asian,and 2% are Hispanic. The numbers are clear; even in today’s modern times, women (and especially women of color) are fighting uphill battles to participate in tech.
Gender Bias Leads to Underrepresentation
Note: About 4 in 10 working women (42%) in the United States say that they have faced some form of discrimination on the job because of their gender. The more educated women are, the more they are going to feel a somewhat sexist stigma because of their knowledge of various subjects or the positions that they hold. Roughly 3 in 10 working women with a post graduate degree (29%) say they have experienced repeated slights at work because of their gender, compared to 18% of those with a bachelor’s degree and 12% with less education. In the tech world, the majority of women have achieved at least a bachelor’s degree, making them more likely to face discrimination based on their gender. This bias creates a lack of representation.
Many people believe that creating equality means ignoring differences. However, a truly inclusive workplace acknowledges and celebrates those differences. This must start at the executive level and to be a conscious business decision. When organizations make conscious choices to discuss diversity and bias, opportunities are created. During a study at Harvard University, researchers were surprised to find that younger women were more likely to seek out mentorship (from both male and female leaders) than younger women who didn’t receive diverse training.
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