Few women in IT, few even trying to get into IT
Vast majority of tech job seekers are men, says IT job site...
The UK can claim the world's first computer programmer in Ada Lovelace but today lacks female IT workers
Photo: Malcolm Trendinnick
Every UK techie knows there are few women in IT - with female IT pros making up less than a fifth of the tech workforce. And now research by The IT Job Board reveals how few women are even trying to get a job in the industry.
The tech jobs site probed its candidate database last month and found just 16 per cent of job seekers were women - the same proportion of females already working in UK IT.
The number of female IT pros in the UK stands at 17 per cent, according to IT sector skills body e-skills UK. The organisation is running a campaign to raise the ratio of female IT workers to 45 per cent - the percentage of women in the UK's working population.
The IT Job Board is also running a campaign calling for more women to join the UK's tech sector. Commenting on the research, Alex Farrell, MD of The IT Job Board, said in a statement: "There is a serious lack of women working in the IT sector but what are the reasons behind this? The sector is male-dominated, and - I believe - a prejudice exists that men are perhaps more proficient when it comes to IT.
"Of course, this doesn't paint an accurate picture, and the sector boasts a wealth of female talent - talent which should be championed."
The top two job titles for women working in IT companies and departments are project manager and business analyst, The IT Job Board research found. This compares with developer and project manager for men.
London, Reading and Birmingham are the top three locations attracting female IT workers, the research found, with London, Birmingham and Manchester the top three for men.
"As the backbone of business, IT can be a competitive and stressful environment to work in, with long hours that perhaps don't fit in with the needs of raising a family. However, I believe companies need to focus on creating more diverse workforces, and to help women build and develop careers in IT," Farrell added.