UK IT jobs: 91% of firms say less than a fifth of applicants are women

Technojobs.co.uk has revealed that 91% of IT companies see only a fifth of job applications from women.

According to the online recruiter's poll, half of all UK tech employers also reported women still make up just one in twenty applicants for IT jobs in the UK.

"Technology is one of the most rapidly developing industries globally, with an increasing number of specialised jobs becoming available, yet the lack of female representation is worrying," said Anthony Sherick, managing director of Technojobs.

"It's not just the question of a skills shortage, but a lack of choosing IT as a profession in the first place, as women hesitate to take their place in what the results reveal to be a male-dominated domain. In order to rectify this problem, we need to change the image of tech by making it more accessible to women."

The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has asked the government to slash tuition fees for some science, technology, and engineering and maths (Stem) courses in a bid to plug the skills gap.

A CBI/Pearson survey conducted last year, showed that more than four in ten firms (42%) faced difficulties recruiting individuals with Stem skills and knowledge.

"There is a shameful gender gap in science and technology so we need to transform society's ideas of the choices women have in their careers," said Katja Hall, CBI chief policy director.

"Employees with the right skills to work in areas like medicine, engineering and computer science also tend to have higher earnings on average than those who don't."

According to government data, there were just 176,000 women employed as IT professionals in the UK last year, compared to 953,000 men.

The Office for National Statistics said that the number of women represent 46% of the labour market but only make up 13% of Stem professionals.