Facebook diversity statistics show mostly white, male workforce
The social network releases its ethnic and gender data for the first time, saying it has a lot of work to do to become more diverse.
The company released the data on the heels of similar reports from Google, Yahoo, and LinkedIn that came out in recent weeks. The latest figures should come as no surprise to anyone looking at the past reports, since Facebook's demographic breakdown was consistent with those other companies.
The reports highlight many tech companies' persistent inability to diversify their ranks to include more women and underrepresented minorities, especially in senior-level positions. For its part, Facebook admitted Wednesday that it has a lot of work to do to become more diverse, but said it's committed to that goal.
The company said it is implementing several programs to help diversify its staff, including developing new recruiting strategies to attract minority candidates and expanding its "Facebook University" internship program for college freshmen from underrepresented groups.
Wednesday's report stated that Facebook is 69 percent male, with 57 percent white and 34 percent Asian employees. Hispanic employees make up 4 percent of the total and black employees make up 2 percent. The gender and ethnic breakdown in tech jobs is even more pronounced, and senior-level positions are held by white and male employees by a large majority.
Comparatively, according to the latest US Census data, non-Hispanic whites account for 63 percent of the total population, Hispanic or Latino people make up 17 percent, black or African-American people account for 13 percent, and Asians make up 5 percent.
After Google released its figures last month, the search giant said it was disappointed with its record of hiring women, as well as black and Hispanic employees. Women made up 30 percent of the company's workforce, on par with Facebook's statistic. LinkedIn and Yahoo this month disclosed their diversity statistics, also showing mostly white and Asian male workforces.
All major employers must file diversity statistics with the federal government but aren't required to disclose the information to the public.