Women in Industry: By the Numbers

An all-time high of 11.5 million jobs were unfulfilled in March of this year. While this has created labor shortages that continue to impact the supply chain, it has also forced businesses to reconsider their strategy to attract and retain top talent. This includes a greater focus on closing the gender gap in industry.

According to Deloitte Global, women at global technology firms will make up 33% of the workforce in 2022, up 2% from 2019. While this percentage may seem small, it represents notable progress in industry.

The data related to women in industry provides insight into the advances women are making in education, the STEM industry sectors they’re filling, and the job positions they’re achieving. Let’s dive in.

Women’s Education

Since the 1990s, women have continued to outnumber men in college enrollment. And in the workforce today, women make up nearly half of college-educated workers.

For the first time ever, women outnumber men at the Research Science Institute (RSI), the most prestigious STEM program for high school students in the U.S., representing 55% of students accepted in 2022.
According to a National Student Clearinghouse Research Center report, women made up almost 60% of college students in the 2020-2021 academic year.
In 2019, 1.15 million women earned a bachelor’s degree compared to 857,545 men.
In the 2019-2020 academic year, 28,839 women earned a bachelor’s degree in engineering compared to 97,853 men. For health professions and related programs, 211,268 women earned a bachelor’s degree while 39,382 men did.
Data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) found that in 2020, women represented 45% of students majoring in STEM, up from 40% in 2010.
Women’s enrollment in STEM-related college courses rises about 6% each year.
In 2018, women earned 53% of STEM college degrees.
Overall, women of color make up a minority of graduates with STEM degrees. Asian women represent 5.3%, Latinas represent just over 4%, Black women represent 2.9%, and American Indian and Native American women make up just 0.1% of graduates.

Women in STEM

Since 1990, occupations in STEM in the U.S. have increased by 79%. There are many paths one can take with a STEM degree, but the sector most women occupy is healthcare.

Women make up 74% of workers in healthcare-related jobs. Of the 9.8 million employees, women represent 7.3 million.
Women also hold 48% of life science jobs and 40% of physical science jobs. They make up 25% of computer professionals and represent 15% of the engineering workforce.
In math-related fields, women represent 47% of employees.
27% of the cybersecurity sector is made up of women.
However, the Harvard Business Review found that women in STEM careers were 45% more likely than male employees to leave the STEM field within just a year of work because of hostile work environments.
Additionally, women in STEM earn about 74% of what their male counterparts earn.

Women Leaders in STEM

According to the Harvard Business Review, only 8% of Fortune 500 companies are led by women and just 1% by women of color. And while female leaders like Katherine Johnson and Lydia Villa-Komaroff have defied the gender gap in STEM, there are fewer women in leadership positions than men.

Of STEM CEOs, 3% are women.
Men are 7x more likely to be depicted in STEM roles in TV and movies.
If the rate at which the gender gap in STEM is closing remains the same, women would be equally represented on corporate boards in 2045.
Board positions for women in STEM rose 18% in 2020.

Women in Industry

According to Thomas industrial research, women said that STEM programs are the most effective pathway for them to enter the manufacturing sector.

Of the 15.8 million manufacturing employees, 30% are women.
Men are 16% more likely to seek out a career in manufacturing than women, according to Thomas’ 2022 Career Advancement in Manufacturing Annual Report. Still, 75% of women are likely to recommend a career in manufacturing.

There are more than 1.1 million women working in the construction industry nationwide, making up just under 10%. However, women are more likely to work in administrative and office positions.
While the national gender pay gap is 19%, the gap is only 3.7% in the construction sector.
The 2017 U.S. Census of Agriculture found that women accounted for 36% of all U.S. farmers.

Women Leaders in Industry

While there are fewer female leaders than men in manufacturing, the stigma that manufacturing is a male-only industry is changing. And amid the Great Resignation, companies like AT&T and Deloitte have prioritized advancing careers for women in manufacturing and tech.

According to a 2022 report by Thomas, 1 in 4 business leaders are women.
Of leading manufacturing companies around the world, 2.7% are led by women, and 0.005% of oil and gas companies have female leadership.
Of female leaders in the manufacturing industry, many can be found in the apparel sector, where 7.2% of CEOs are female.
1.4% of CEOs in construction are women.
Connecticut has the highest representation of female leaders in industry at 31%.

Looking Ahead

While 28% of men spend over 5 hours a week doing unpaid labor, more than 50% of women do. To help women maintain a positive work-life balance and close the gender gap in industry, businesses could provide on-site childcare, which 93% of women and 86% of men report supporting.

Research shows that diverse teams are more innovative and are better for business. And according to a study by the Columbia Business School and the University of Maryland, companies with management level gender diversity can see a $42 million increase in value.

However, if the diminishing of the wage gap remains on the same trajectory, the gap will not close until 2059. Fortunately, there are initiatives being put in place to close the gender and diversity gap. This includes the Gender and Diversity KPI Alliance (GDKA). In 2020, over 50 companies joined, including Pfizer, Chevron, and Google.

To better recruit and retain diverse talent and make changes in industry, check out these other articles by Thomas: