Workplace Disparities in Information Technology Careers Leading to Increased Turnover Rate for Women and Minorities

A new report from The Level Playing Field Institute indicates that women and people of color are significantly underrepresented and have vastly different work experiences than their white counterparts in technology jobs leading to a high turnover rate.

The report, entitled Tilted Playing Field: An Examination of Hidden Bias in Information Technology Workplaces, reports on data collected from a sample of information technology engineers and managers in large companies and small startups nationwide.

The study shows information technology workplace experiences vary significantly by race and gender, turnover rates have increased due to the negative experiences, and diversity is not a priority for gatekeepers.

The findings in the report show that minorities and women experience exclusion from their co-works and even bullying in the workplace at rates significantly higher than male and white employees.

Working in uncomfortable work environments can cause employees to leave seeking other jobs at a different company or another field all together. As the number of negative work experiences reported by individuals across the study increased, the level of satisfaction with their current job and likelihood to remain with that company significantly decreased.

It makes sense that women and minorities are still underrepresented because even the small amount that may hold tech positions, end up leaving in a years’ time. Diversity is scarcer in startups than in major companies.

In the report, minorities were nearly twice as likely as whites to be in favor of a company-wide practice to increase diversity (80% compared to 46%).

Although information technology careers are growing fast, minorities and women are not benefiting from the boom. From the statistics in the study there is a lot to be done internally within the workplace. It is almost impossible to expect a group of people excluded at work to continue to stay.

The same holds true for kids and young adults. The push of STEM programs in minority youth is great, but the current disparities in the workplace increase the risk of deterring them away from fully pursuing a career in technology.

To review the findings as well as recommendations on improving IT workplace diversity, download the full report at The Playing Field Institute

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Kiera is the Editor at Black Web 2.0. Connect with her on Twitter, Google+, and LinkedIn.
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