Survey: Conflicting Data on Workplace Diversity

A new report from CompTIA, a suburban Chicago-based IT trade association details reveals contradictory viewpoints on the current state and future goals for workplace diversity.

Nearly eight in ten high-tech industry workers surveyed by the organization say they are satisfied with their organization’s diversity efforts; and 87 percent say they’ve worked in a department comprised of a diverse group of employees in the last year.

At the same time, 45 percent of workers say the tech industry has lagged in promoting diversity, while another third at least partially agree. This position is backed by statistics from the U.S. Equal Employment Commission and other sources, which find a tech industry workforce that’s overwhelmingly white and male, with fewer African Americans, Hispanics or women than other industries.

One of the more curious findings of the survey relates to gender. Asked if women and men are naturally inclined to succeed in roles that amplify their gender traits, nearly half of respondents agreed. But among executives and senior managers, 61 percent agreed with the statement, compared with 46 percent of middle managers and 22 percent of staff-level workers.

The industry’s gender gap is widest when it comes to pay equity. Two-thirds of women in high tech say they would leave their job if they discovered pay imbalances among employees doing equal work, compared to 44 percent of men who said the same.

A majority of workers feel things are changing, with 59 percent of all respondents saying the industry has made strides toward a more diverse workforce.

CompTIA’s “Diversity in the High-Tech Industry” report is based on two online surveys conducted in December; one to 400 U.S. IT professionals, and the other to 200 workers outside the high-tech industry.

Channel Impact^®
Diversity has gained substantial profile in the tech industry in recent years. Many companies are working proactively to achieve greater balance.