An insensitive office environment can greatly influence turnover and the retention of underrepresented groups in the tech industry, according to a new report from the Kapor Center for Social Impact.
Nearly 40 percent of tech employees say unfairness or mistreatment played a major role in their decision to leave their company.
One in 10 women experienced unwanted sexual attention. LGBT tech employees were most likely to be bullied and/or experience public humiliation, according to the research. Underrepresented men and women of color experienced workplace stereotyping at twice the rate of white and Asian men and women.
The study found the more bullying that was experienced, the shorter length of time employees remained at their company. Nearly two-thirds of the employees who had left said they would have stayed if their employer had corrected its workplace culture problems.
Having a diversity and inclusion strategy in place seemed to correlate to having fewer reports of unfairness, sexual harassment, bullying and workplace stereotyping — and lower rates of tech employees leaving due to unfairness.
The study also found having a comprehensive diversity and inclusion strategy had a much greater impact than just having individual initiatives, such as unconscious bias training.
Read more about the report on the center’s website.