Women employed in technology and financial services may be disproportionately exposed to job displacement as artificial intelligence and automation spread, a report by the City of London Corporation warns. [I] While those sectors are often portrayed as “future-proof”, the report argues that the distribution of work within them is uneven: women remain heavily concentrated in clerical and support functions — precisely the tasks most susceptible to automation — while being underrepresented in higher-growth digital roles.

A further concern is the “mid-career cohort”: women with five or more years of experience who might be expected to transition into more technical positions. Instead, many are being sidelined by recruitment systems that reward linear career trajectories and narrowly defined job histories. The report suggests that rigid hiring practices, increasingly reinforced by automated CV screening, can penalize candidates whose profiles do not match predetermined templates. [II] Career breaks linked to caring responsibilities, for instance, may be treated as gaps rather than evidence of resilience or transferable capability; similarly, experience gained outside conventional tech pathways may be discounted even when it signals strong problem-solving and stakeholder-management skills.

To counteract these dynamics, the City of London Corporation urges employers to prioritize reskilling and upskilling, especially for women not currently in technical roles. The report highlights clerical positions as a key risk area, estimating that around 119,000 such roles across tech, financial and professional services—predominantly performed by women—could be displaced over the next decade. [III] Investing in retraining programmes could also reduce organizational costs, with potential savings of up to £757m in redundancy payments, while helping firms redeploy staff into areas where talent shortages persist.

Crucially, the report argues for a shift from credential-based hiring towards capability-based recruitment, where employers assess potential adaptability and learning agility rather than relying solely on past technical experience. It also notes high attrition among women in tech, with estimates suggesting up to 60,000 leave each year due to limited progression, insufficient recognition and inadequate pay—factors that undermine retention just as demand for digital skills intensifies.

The findings sit within a broader climate of workforce anxiety about AI, with surveys indicating that a significant share of UK workers fear job loss within the next five years. [IV] More than 12,000 vacancies remained unfilled in 2024. Finally, it cautions that pay rises alone will not close the gap; without sustained investment in skills, the digital talent shortfall could persist to at least 2035, potentially costing the UK over £10bn in foregone economic growth.
(Adapted from https://www.theguardian.com)