Women In Tech: Women in the Indian tech industry are experiencing a major gender gap in terms of the payscale offered across jobs in the sector. A recent study shows that females in the domestic tech sector earn 22-30 per cent less than their male counterparts in jobs that are in high demand.
The study, by TeamLease Digital, found that this gap in pay parity is being seen across the industry in different job roles. The difference in salary was felt the most in positions like data scientist, fullstack engineer, data engineer, product manager, and DevOps, reported Moneycontrol.
In general jobs in the tech industry, the average pay gap between females and males stood around 10-17 per cent. Even females entering the industry at fresher levels are earning almost 15.38 per cent less than their male counterparts, the study found.
Currently, the IT sector employs nearly 20.5 lakh female professionals, the study found. The Global Capability Centres (GCCs) in multinational companies have a female workforce of 4.82 lakh and anticipate to see a growth in female tech professionals from 25 per cent to 35 per cent by 2027.
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Why Does The Income Gap Exist?
This gap in pay structure was attributed to certain factors such as inequalities at the structural level, hindrances in career growth, gaps in negotiation, and disproportionate role distribution. While the income gap was seen across the industry, it was much more prominent in technical and leadership roles in the sector.
The study found that as females move ahead to secure higher positions in the tech space, they experience an increase in the gap in income due to insufficient mentorship and lower opportunities for promotion.
Measures Needed To Boost Pay Parity
The report said that certain measures need to be adopted in the tech space to improve the pay parity. These include setting in place transparent pay policies, mentorship programmes, giving training on unconscious bias, and providing flexible working conditions to help aid the work-life balance for employees.
