
Women in tech, media and telco the most empowered
Women in technology, media and telecommunication are the most empowered women driven specifically by the tech industry where women are slightly more empowered than men, according to Women in Work Index and the Global Empowerment Index published by consultancy PwC on International Women’s Day.
Women working in the financial services and energy, utilities and resources sectors are the second and third most empowered, but men are significantly more empowered than women in financial services.
The research found that men and women are broadly similar in how important each empowerment factor is to them. However, men were more likely than women to say that they actually benefited from empowerment factors at work.
The biggest gap areas for women are fair reward (34 point gap), choosing when (27 point gap), where (22 point gap) and how (22 point gap) they work, job fulfilment (20 point gap) and having a manager consider their viewpoint when making decisions (19 point gap).
The women in the survey with the highest empowerment scores were more likely to ask for a raise (55%), and more likely to ask for a promotion (52%). This compares with scores of 31% (24 point gap) and 26% (26 point gap) respectively for women in the survey overall.
This Empowerment Index is based on an analysis of gender-focused perspectives from almost 22,000 working women across the world and measures 12 factors of empowerment across four dimensions of empowerment: autonomy; impact; meaning and belonging; and confidence and competence.
The most empowered women are also more likely to recommend their employer as a place to work (67%), a significant 32 percentage points higher than women respondents overall. They are also significantly more likely to say they are very satisfied with their job (54%), compared with 25% of women overall (29 point gap).
The research shows that despite a return to some normalcy post covid, the workplace continues to be an unequal place for women globally, the survey shows.
“There are trillion-dollar gains to be made from closing the gender pay gap. Increasing women’s average wages to match those of their male counterparts across the OECD would boost female earnings by more than US$2 trillion per annum. But, based on OECD countries’ gender pay gap of 14% in 2021, and historical rates of progress towards gender pay equality, it will take more than 50 years to close the gap across the OECD nations.”
The Global Empowerment Index shows there is a gap of 34 percentage points between the proportion of women respondents who say being fairly rewarded financially for their work is important to them and the proportion who actually experience it, making it the biggest gap for women in our survey.
The Women in Work Index shows a slight fall in the unemployment rate for women, from 6.7% to 6.4%, in 2021. However, similar improvements were also evident in male participation and employment rates, suggesting that employment levels are a symptom of macroeconomic factors and the general labour market recovery, rather than an advancement towards gender equality, the report notes.
“Increasing female employment rates across the OECD to match those of Sweden (a top performer in female participation rates) would result in potential economic gains of nearly US$6 trillion per annum.
The four most important workplace empowerment factors for women, which are also the top four considerations for women deciding to make career changes, are:
- Fair compensation (72%)
- Job fulfilment (69%)
- A workplace where they can truly be themselves (67%)
- Having a team that cares about their wellbeing (61%)
The most empowered women are also more likely to recommend their employer as a place to work (67%), a significant 32 percentage points higher than women respondents overall. They are also significantly more likely to say they are very satisfied with their job (54%), compared with 25% of women overall (29 point gap).
“Women working full-time in person have the lowest empowerment scores. This trend follows suit for men – suggesting that autonomy over how, where and when people work fuels feelings of empowerment across the workforce.”
“The women who are most empowered also have greater opportunity to work remotely (74%). However, almost half (48%) of women can’t do their job remotely. Of the 11,285 women who can, 29% are working remotely full-time, and 56% had some level of hybrid work pattern.”
Market research firm Insider Intelligence says layoffs across technology and other industries have plummeted DEI staff—a sharp reversal from the hiring burst just a few years ago.
“From May to September 2020, postings for diversity, equity, and belonging jobs rose 123%, Indeed reported. That tide turned in 2022 as DEI listings fell 19%, according to Textio data from Bloomberg. Job cuts at Twitter whittled its DEI team down to just two people from 30”, Insider Intelligence says.
“Cutting resources and investments tied to DEI sends a message that diversity and inclusion are not corporate necessities, which is a bad look. Brands run the risk of hurting their ability to attract and keep diverse talent.”
Moonshot News is an independent European news website for all IT, Media and Advertising professionals, powered by women and with a focus on driving the narrative for diversity, inclusion and gender equality in the industry.
Our mission is to provide top and unbiased information for all professionals and to make sure that women get their fair share of voice in the news and in the spotlight!
We produce original content, news articles, a curated calendar of industry events and a database of women IT, Media and Advertising associations.