Microsoft always tries to pride itself on growing diversity in the field of technology and within its own ranks. However, according to a diversity report for updated as of September 30, 2016, the company’s female employee rate is continuing to fall (via ZDNet).
This is the second year in a row that Microsoft has noted a significant decrease of women in its global workforce. Three years ago, the company had a solid 29% but the Nokia shutdown in Finland left Microsoft with a declining feminine influence. Originally it dropped down to 26.8% and this year it is continuing that decline to 25.8%.
With only a quarter of the company identified as women, Bloomberg Technology does point out that at least Microsoft is having a ‘very modest’ increase of minority individuals. African American employee numbers went up from 0.2% to 3.7% and Hispanic/Latino numbers gained from 0.1% to 5.5% among the workforce.
Gwen Houston, the company’s chief diversity and inclusion officer, assured Bloomberg that the decline in women employees was a temporary setback. According to their interview, women make up 27.7% of new hires since the report. Most of them were hired for technical jobs. Also, 6.6% of them were African American and 7% of them were Hispanic/Latino.
