50 Diversity in the Workplace Statistics to Know

Diversity and inclusion in the workplace are among the most important topics facing HR, people teams and recruiting professionals.

Knowing a wide range of statistics related to workplace diversity and inclusion might help you and your team better understand the complex nature of the topics. Using this knowledge, you can work toward building a diverse and inclusive workforce that will ultimately yield higher revenue and boost employee performance.

General Population Statistics

THE U.S. IS BECOMING MORE DIVERSE

The Population of White People Is Decreasing

People who identify as white and non-Hispanic in the United States (the current largest U.S. racial population) declined in numbers for the first time on record in 2020, falling at 57.8 percent of the country’s population for that year. This population decreased from 63.7 percent in 2010.

White People Will No Longer Be U.S. Racial Majority by 2045 

Non-Hispanic white people are no longer projected to account for the majority of Americans by 2045, making the U.S. more racially and ethnically pluralistic by this time.

1 in 3 Americans Will Be Non-White by 2060

One in three Americans is projected to belong to a race other than white by 2060, with the fastest-growing U.S. racial or ethnic group being those who are two or more races.

GENERATION Z AND MILLENIALS INCLUDE MORE RACIAL AND ETHNIC MINORITIES

48 Percent of Generation Z Are Racial or Ethnic Minorities

Generation Z is the most racially-diverse U.S. generation, with approximately 48 percent identifying as non-white.

Millenials Are 19 Percent More Diverse Than Baby Boomers

As of 2015, Census data shows that around 56 percent of Millennials are white, whereas Baby Boomers are 75 percent white. Additionally, there are now more Millennials than Baby Boomers in the U.S. population today, as 18 to 44-year-olds make up the largest age bracket in the United States.

Diverse Demographics Employment Statistics

MINORITY POPULATIONS ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE UNEMPLOYED

Unemployment Rate Is Higher Among Black and Hispanic or Latine Populations

Based on 2020 Census data, the average U.S. unemployment rate sits at approximately 8.1 percent. Meanwhile, average U.S. unemployment rates were higher for people who are Black (11.5 percent) and Hispanic or Latine (10.6 percent).

7.6 Percent of People With Disabilities Were Unemployed in 2022 

In 2022, 7.6 percent of people with a disability in the U.S. were unemployed. Across all age groups, people with disabilities are less likely to be employed than people without disabilities.

5.6 Percent of Foreign-Born Workers Were Unemployed in 2021

In 2021, 5.6 percent of foreign-born U.S. workers were unemployed — down from 9.2 percent in 2020 (likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic), but up from 3.1 percent in 2019. For reference, 17.4 percent of the U.S. workforce is foreign-born as of 2021.

7.4 Percent of People With Less Than a High School Diploma Are Unemployed in 2023

Those in the U.S. who are 25 and older and hold no high school diploma experienced an unemployment rate of 7.4 percent in February 2023 — the highest rate in comparison to those with a high school diploma or more education. Within the same age and education group, the highest unemployment rate was found amongst Black people at 9.8 percent.

Families and Couples Often Face Significant Financial Hardship

21.5 Percent of Families Didn’t Have One Family Member Employed in 2021

In 2021, 21.5 percent of families had no members employed. Additionally, that percentage goes up to 23.4 percent for Black families.

1 in 4 Heterosexual Married-Couple Families Live on a Single Income

25.3 percent of heterosexual married-couple families live on a single income, with one of the parents staying home with children in 2021.

In 18.2 Percent of Heterosexual Married-Couple Families, Only Husband Was Employed

In 2021, about 18 percent of heterosexual married-couple families were living on a single income brought in solely by the husband of the family. That’s compared to 7.1 percent of heterosexual married-couple families where only the wife was employed.

Gender Diversity in the Workplace Statistics

Almost Half OF U.S. EMPLOYEES ARE WOMEN

As of February 2023, women 16 years and over make up 47 percent of all U.S. employees, but there’s still a long way to go to make it a more equitable environment and break the glass ceiling.

Women Are More Likely to Experience Workplace Bias

Women’s Wages Equal 83 Percent of Men’s Wages

The gender pay gap persists as of 2022, as the median weekly earnings of full-time working women equaled 83 percent of the median weekly earnings by full-time working men.

Discrimination and Sexual Harassment Remains Prevalent for Women at Work

Two-thirds of women experience discriminative microaggressions in the workplace. Women also filed over 78 percent of sexual harassment charges received by the U.S. EEOC between 2018 and 2021.

Women Are Less Likely to Be Hired Than Men in Entry-Level and Manager-Level Jobs

Though women are earning more bachelor’s degrees than men, they are less likely to be hired for entry-level and manager-level jobs in comparison to men with similar qualifications.

Additionally, a 2019 study found that even when women hold the same characteristics as men, they are 30 percent less likely to be called for a job interview.

10.6 Percent of Fortune 500 CEOs Are Women

As of January 2023, women make up 10.6 percent of the CEO workforce at Fortune 500 companies. This led the amount of women CEOs in this area to total 53, which is the highest it’s ever been.

87 Women Are Promoted For Every 100 Men Promoted to Manager

Only 87 women, and 82 women of color, are promoted for every 100 men promoted to manager. As a result, men significantly outnumber women in managerial positions.

Women Ask for Pay Raises at the Same Rate as Men, But Receive Them Less Often

Women ask for pay raises almost just as often as men at similar positions (at 11 percent for both) — but women receive them about 7 percent less often than men do.

Women Are Less Likely to Be In C-Suite Roles

1 in 4 C-Suite Leaders Is a Woman

Only 1 in 4 C-suite or senior leadership roles are held by women. (That’s why some companies are focused on increasing the amount of women in tech leadership positions.)

1 in 20 C-Suite Leaders Is a Woman of Color

Of the 26 percent of women in the C-suite, just 5 percent of those leaders are women of color. In nearly every category, women of color are the most underrepresented population in corporate America, compared to white men, white women and men of color.

Additionally, the same report found that between entry level and the C-suite, the representation of women of color drops off by more than 75 percent.

Women Are Achieving Higher Levels in the Workforce 

Women Are Increasingly Likely to be Hired With Anonymous Applications

For applications on research time at the Hubble Space Telescope, Harvard Business Review found women’s research proposals accounted for 30 percent of the total acceptance rate when anonymous, 23 percent when first names were removed and 18 percent when not anonymous.

Women Obtain 4-Year College Degrees More Than Men 

Women are getting higher education degrees more often than men, making them more competitive candidates in the workforce compared to their counterparts who do not have a degree.

Senior-Level Women Are Twice as Likely as Senior-Level Men to Focus on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

In a 2022 report, McKinsey found that women in senior management were twice as likely as men in similar roles to spend “substantial time” on DEI work falling outside their normal job responsibilities, such as supporting employee resource groups.

Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Workplace Statistics

WHITE PEOPLE ARE THE MAJORITY OF THE U.S. WORKFORCE

77 Percent of the U.S. Workforce Is White

77 percent of the U.S. workforce is made up of white people. Hispanic or Latine people make up 18 percent of the workforce, Black people make up 13 percent of the workforce and Asian people make up 7 percent of the workforce, as of 2021.

6 Fortune 500 Companies Have a Black CEO 

As of 2022, six Fortune 500 companies have a chief executive officer who is Black.

PEOPLE OF COLOR ARE MORE LIKELY TO EXPERIENCE WORKPLACE BIAS

1 in 4 Black and Hispanic or Latine Employees Report Discrimination at Work

24 percent of both Black and Hispanic or Latine employees have experienced discrimination in the workplace, according to a 2020 Gallup poll.

Candidates With “Distinctively Black Names” Are Less Likely to Move Forward in Interview Process

Researchers found that job candidates who have “distinctively Black names” have a lower probability of hearing back from companies they applied to in comparison to candidates with “distinctively white names”.

1 in 6 Fortune 500 Companies Publish Annual DEI Reports

A little more than half of Fortune 500 companies have published some sort of data on their racial and ethnic makeup in 2021. But only 79 Fortune 500 companies release full annual reports breaking down DEI progress.

Diversity and Inclusion Business Impact Statistics

Diverse Companies Are More Likely to Be Profitable

Diverse Companies Have 2.5 Times Higher Cash Flow Per Employee

Companies with highly diverse teams noticed a significant increase in cash flow — to the tune of 2.5 times per employee.

Diverse Management Outperforms Less-Diverse Management

In 2020, companies with more than 30 percent women executives were more likely to outperform compared to companies with 10 to 30 percent. Also, companies in the top quartile of racial and ethnic diversity outperformed by 36 percent in profitability compared to fourth-quartile companies.

A Boston Consulting Group study looked at companies with diverse management teams and found that, on average, they enjoyed a 19 percent increase in revenue compared to their less diverse counterparts as of 2018. 

Companies With Diverse Boards Can See Higher Profits

During 2018 to 2020, companies with more than 30 percent of board seats occupied by women delivered higher year-over-year revenue in comparison to less gender-diverse counterparts. Plus, companies with 30 percent or more board seats occupied by non-white directors delivered higher year-over-year revenue in comparison to companies with less than 20 percent of the board occupied by non-white directors.

Diverse Companies See Higher Revenues

Boston Consulting Group surveyed 1,700 companies and found that companies with above-average total diversity had 19 percent higher innovation revenues and 9 percent higher EBIT margins on average.

Diverse Companies Are More Likely to Be Collaborative and Engaged

Diverse Teams Are More Likely to Make Better Decisions

Compared to individual decision makers, diverse teams make better decisions 66 percent of the time. Gender-diverse teams were found to make better business decisions 73 percent of the time, while teams including a range of ages and different geographic locations saw better decisions 87 percent of the time.

Through 2022, 75 percent of organizations having diverse and inclusive decision-making teams were projected to exceed their financial targets by Gartner.

Inclusive Company Cultures Lead to Higher Work Engagement 

Employees who feel included within their organizations are about three times more likely than other peers to feel excited by and committed to organization missions, according to McKinsey.

Gender-Diverse Teams Are More Likely to Be Profitable

Gender-Diverse Companies Outperform Less-Diverse Peers

The most gender-diverse companies see a 48 percent difference in outperformance compared to the least gender-diverse companies.

Gender-Diverse Companies Notice Improved Value Creation

FCLTGlobal found that the most gender-diverse company boards outperformed the least gender-diverse boards in return on invested capital (ROIC) by 2.6 percent. 

Gender-Diverse Executive Teams Can Increase Profitability

Gender-diverse companies that are in the top quartile for gender diversity on executive teams are 25 percent more likely than fourth-quartile companies to have above-average profitability.

Global GDP Could Increase $13 Trillion By Making Workforce Equally Gender-Diverse

If the global workforce became equally gender-diverse by 2030, global GDP could increase by $13 trillion, according to McKinsey.

Racially and Ethnically-Diverse Teams Are More Likely to Be Profitable

Racially and Ethnically-Diverse Companies Outperform Less-Diverse Peers

Top-quartile companies for racial and ethnic diversity are 36 percent more likely to outperform fourth-quartile companies. Likelihood for outperformance also increases higher for diversity in ethnicity than diversity in gender.

Ethnically-Diverse Executive Teams Tend to Be More Profitable

Executive teams with high ethnic diversity are found to be 33 percent more likely to perform above EBIT margins as of 2017.

Importance of Diversity Among Job Seekers and Employees Statistics

Discrimination in the Workplace Still Occurs

Over Half of U.S. Employees Have Experienced or Witnessed Discrimination at Work 

In a 2019 Glassdoor Report, 61 percent of U.S. employees noted experiencing or witnessing workplace discrimination.

34 Percent of Employees Leave a Job Due to Unresolved Harassment Issues

Out of a survey of 822 Americans, 34 percent of the participants noted leaving a job because of unresolved harassment issues.

Workers Prefer Diverse and Inclusive Companies

3 in 4 Job Seekers and Employees Value Diverse Companies and Coworkers 

According to a 2020 Glassdoor survey, 76 percent of job seekers and employees polled said a diverse workforce was an important factor for them when evaluating job opportunities and companies.

80 Percent of Employees Want Inclusive Companies 

According to a CNBC survey, 80 percent of respondents said they want to work for a company that values diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. 

Half of Employees Want Their Company to Invest More Toward Diversity and Inclusion

50 percent of U.S. employees are looking for their company to invest more in promoting workplace diversity and inclusion.

40 Percent of Employees Want Their Company to Be More LGBTQ+-Inclusive 

40 percent of U.S. employees feel their companies aren’t doing enough to inclusively hire more members of the LGBTQ+ community.

44 Percent of Women Wouldn’t Work for a Non-Inclusive Company

In a McKinsey survey, 44 percent of women respondents said they have decided against pursuing or accepting a job position due to the belief that the organization wouldn’t be inclusive.

Companies Are Prioritizing Diversity and Inclusion

3 in 4 Companies Believe Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Is a Priority 

In a survey by Beamery, 3 out of 4 companies rated every aspect of DEI listed as a priority within their organization.

44 Percent of Organizations Have Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at a C-Level Priority 

While diversity and inclusion seem to consistently be important topics to employees at each seniority level, 44 percent of organizations in a Traliant report say their executive team “owns” their DEI strategy.