How can we accelerate gender equality in the tech world?
The role that tech plays in how we live, work and connect has never been more influential. Yet when it comes to moving the dial to achieve gender equality, the industry continues to face challenges.
In 2026, the number of women in STEM is growing but at a glacial rate. According to the latest government census data, women now comprise 26% of the workforce in the STEM sector, meaning that it will take until 2070 to reach full parity1.
To address this disparity and dismantle barriers in the tech world, it is important to understand the intersectional nuances behind the statistics. Menopause, pregnancy loss, neonatal care leave, disability and neurodiversity can all dictate whether women stay, progress, and are fairly remunerated in tech.
Culture, Bias and AI
The Work Couch, RPC's employment law podcast, has, across multiple conversations, highlighted the critical link between tech and workplace culture by shining a light on lived experiences.
For example, our episodes on menopause, flexible working and caring responsibilities all illustrate how the expectation to be permanently available can quietly exclude talented women from pathways to promotion. For many women juggling caring responsibilities or experiencing chronic health conditions or menopausal symptoms such as insomnia and anxiety, the "always on" culture is unsustainable.
Our discussion with disability advocate Samantha Renke on disability inclusion at work goes further, exposing how ableist assumptions are often baked into workplaces and AI systems. Inaccessible platforms and algorithms trained on nondiverse data sets can lock disabled women out of recruitment, progression and even basic participation.
The Work Couch's mini-series to mark London Tech Week 2024 also delved into the broader landscape: responsible use of AI, and who shapes and governs it. When women, particularly those who are disabled, neurodivergent, or from ethnically diverse backgrounds, are missing from these discussions, bias can creep in and become the default setting.
What’s pushing women out of tech?
Throughout our conversations on The Work Couch, a number of recurring intersectional themes emerge:
Menopause – Many women feel forced to step back or leave roles. This can mean avoiding visible projects or leadership positions, with inevitable consequences for pay and progression. Despite greater awareness and growing numbers of tech employers offering support, many women still feel unable to discuss symptoms with their managers2.
Disability and neurodiversity – Our
, led by women with lived experience, illustrates how standard ways of working, including openplan offices, backtoback video calls, and narrow performance metrics, can exclude neurodivergent talent.
Pregnancy loss and neonatal care – Women who experience pregnancy loss or whose babies require extended neonatal care often report stigma, assumptions about their commitment and stalled careers. The result? Continued career attrition and a widening gender pay gap.
How do we progress in 2026?
Identify your business's specific blockers to achieving gender diversity of representation at senior levels and implement an effective gender balance plan.
Remember that culture is established by leaders. Leadership voices - and silence - are disproportionately impactful. An offhand comment from a leader can undo months of hard work. Conversely, a leader with a bold statement of ambition can effectively accelerate change.
Educate line managers on the challenges faced by women and encourage people to seek support.
Ensure career progression metrics are transparent, communicated and easily accessible.
RPC's Employment, Engagement and Equality team is passionate about supporting this shift. We deliver practical workshops on removing systemic blockers to gender equality, helping businesses implement plans to achieve gender diversity leadership targets. The Work Couch podcast provides a valuable space for learning, where legal insight meets lived experience.
About the campaign
techUK’s TechTogether campaign continues with a focus on ‘Evolving Online Safety'. Our insights this week focus on ensuring AI systems are designed, governed and deployed responsibly, with diverse perspectives shaping how technology impacts society, strengthening cyber defences and reducing vulnerabilities as organisations adopt new technologies and expand digital services, and addressing workplace culture, leadership and systemic barriers to ensure diverse voices shape the future of technology.
