Employment characteristics

Self-employment

During 2023, it is estimated that 12% of all UK workers and 6% of IT specialists were working on a self-employed basis. There was little difference in incidence of self-employment amongst BAME/white workers as a whole (11% versus 12% respectively) nor amongst IT specialists, though self-employment here was marginally more common amongst those from BAME groups (7% and 6% for BAME/white IT specialists respectively).

Ethnicity and the incidence of self-employment (2023)

Source: Analysis of ONS Quarterly Labour Force Survey by BCS

Employees and size of workplace

IT specialists working as employees are, perhaps understandably, more likely than others to be employed within larger workplaces^[2] (i.e. as micro/small sites are less likely to have an in-house function) and whilst 31% of UK employees as a whole were working in larger sites during 2023 (those with 250 or more staff), a figure of 42% was recorded amongst IT specialist employees.

The figure was marginally higher amongst BAME IT specialists, of which 43% were employed in workplaces with 250 or more staff.

Also notable in the chart overleaf is the fact that BAME IT specialists were less likely to be working at microsites than other IT staff – comparison figures in this case being 16% for BAME specialists and 20% for other IT staff.

IT specialists by ethnicity and size of workplace (2023)

Source: Analysis of ONS Quarterly Labour Force Survey by BCS

Industry of employment

Almost one-half (47%) of all BAME IT specialists were working in IT businesses in 2023 - a higher proportion than for those of white ethnic origin (42%). After IT, the next largest employer of IT specialists (BAME/white) was banking/ finance firms (28% and 23% respectively) and the public sector organisations (11% and 15%).

When considering levels of representation again - IT firms, along with banking / finance businesses were found to have the highest proportion of BAME IT specialists (23% and 25% respectively during 2023).

Conversely, the level of BAME representation amongst IT staff was lowest within the energy/water sector where just 9% of IT specialists were from BAME ethnic groups.

BAME employees by occupation and industry (2023)

Source: Analysis of ONS Quarterly Labour Force Survey by BCS
* Five-year average

^[2]The LFS asks individuals about the number of employees at their workplace as opposed to enterprise / organisation as a whole.