Black women missing from tech industry, according to a report.

According to a report by campaigners and a representative body, the UK tech industry is “missing” up to 20,000 black women.According to the report, there are two and half times fewer black women working in IT than in other occupations across the UK.

Coding Black Females, a campaign group, has stated that more people from different backgrounds are needed in technology.

Industry groups concur that there is “more that needs to be done” for diversity’s sake.

The figures presented by authors of the Coding Black Females (CBF) and BCS report obtained from the Office of National Statistics reveal that black women made up 0.7% of those in technology out of all employees in the United Kingdoman Technology but only 1.8% across its workforce as a whole.

For this reason including an extra 20,000 females along with the existing 12,000 IT workers would close this gap. 

Reports also suggest that there is underrepresentation of women at senior leadership level. Only 17% of IT directors will be female in three years’ time according to one publication.

This is because there are many more Indian-origin tech professionals than found generally across other sectors’ workforces according to this study’s findings on ethnicity among IT staff.

‘The only one in the room’

These authors also resortedto surveys and deep interviews which helped them unveil what it feels like beinga woman who blacks while workingin industry? In an interview with Deloitte software engineer Siba Munsanje said:

On your team or project or at a conference sometimes you just have to accept that you’re going to be alone sitting on your own seeing no one around

Sometimes it can get a bit difficult. You know how they usually chorus as they send sad jokes here and there; these are just few things you have got to live with

Adarga's Head of Quality Engineering Nicola Martin has commented on this: “We have recently seen some stats related to diversity in tech being published and we can see that there is still a long way to go.

“The tech industry needs to encourage more diversity to ensure that people want to stay in the industry.”

Senior positions would become more varied if the bias, "[was] part of every step of your design process."

“Only when we have more people from different backgrounds can we ever build systems for everybody and this must start with those who are involved in designing and developing such systems,” BCS’ Chief Executive Officer Rashik Parmar said.

“It is also clear that there remains much to be done despite ongoing efforts by some employers to support diversity and inclusion within their tech workforce,” according to Nimmi Patel from TechUK.

She insisted that both industry and government should cooperate on encouraging, teaching, luring diverse talents so as to make sure black women and women generally come into and progress through the profession.