Engineering a more equal future for women

According to the latest data from EngineeringUK, women now make up 16.9% of the engineering and technology workforce in the UK. This marks a modest increase from 15.7% in 2023 and 16.5% in 2022. However, women still represent only a small fraction compared to the 56% representation in other occupations, with this year-on-year fluctuation highlighting ongoing challenges in retention, particularly among women aged 35 to 64.

These numbers are troubling for many reasons – they show that encouraging women to take up engineering as a career is still a challenge, and that women are not being sufficiently empowered to remain in the engineering profession long-term. As a result, they are not reaching the upper echelons of the industry. Perhaps most importantly, this data presents us with an unassailable truth: 83.1% of our built environment is still being designed by men only.

At a glance: How to even out the gender balance in engineering

• Improve careers education for young people
• Profile and champion the work of female engineers
• Introduce mentoring and networking schemes
• Implement a more structured approach to promotions

Diversity of representation is particularly crucial in positions of power in engineering, where decisions have the potential to shape the future of the profession. Bringing gender balance to boardrooms, workshops and field sites will be essential to moving the dial and creating a world where women can contribute freely to the future of our built world.

Workplace action and perception

According to a past poll conducted by Hays, almost half (45%) of engineering professionals didn’t think their workplace is taking any action to create a more equal gender balance.

As explored in the 2025 Hays Salary & Recruiting Trends Guide, 47% of engineering professionals say their employer’s employee value proposition (EVP) doesn’t match the reality of working there, and 57% have left a role because it didn’t meet expectations, highlighting the need for authentic, inclusive workplace cultures that support talent retention.

1. Improve careers education for young people

According to our previous poll, 36% considered the improvement of careers education to be the number one way to get more women into engineering.

Encouraging the uptake of engineering careers amongst young women is clearly a moral imperative, but a strategic one too. If we are to fill the projected 173,000 new engineering roles anticipated by 2030, attracting and engaging upcoming entrants to the workforce is an urgent priority.

Our 2025 Salary & Recruiting Trends Guide shows that 98% of engineering employers experienced skills shortages in the past year, and 76% plan to recruit in the next 12 months. This underscores the urgency of expanding the talent pipeline, including through greater gender diversity.

Instilling knowledge of engineering career pathways at an early stage is also crucial to painting an accurate picture of what the profession entails. For too many, the word ‘engineer’ conjures up images of hard hats, high-vis jackets, building sites and complex equations. The other important sides to it – the research, the project management, and the creative ideation – are often overlooked. Showcasing engineering in a more holistic way has the potential to vastly broaden its appeal, making it easier for employers to attract and engage talent from a diverse range of backgrounds.

2. Profile and champion the work of female engineers

Many engineers find themselves involved with projects that are at the forefront of what we as a society are technically, intellectually and creatively capable of doing. They build smart cities, design greener and more sustainable futures and maintain historical spaces. Profiling the engineers – and particularly female engineers – working on these major projects can help women aspiring into these roles to visualise themselves accomplishing similar things and making a difference in the industry.

21% believe profiling female engineers to be the most effective way of encouraging women into the profession, which also ties into the significance of improved careers education. Bringing female engineers into classrooms to discuss the work they do not only embeds engineering as an inclusive profession from a young age, but also helps to generate interest and awareness around it as a career.

3. Introduce mentoring and networking schemes

According to our past poll, over a third (35%) deem mentoring schemes to be the number one way of facilitating better career progression for female engineers. A good mentor can help women develop their leadership and management abilities, provide interview support, and focus specifically on the skills needed in order to progress. These schemes can be particularly crucial within organisations that lack transparent progression structures, providing coaching on unwritten expectations and advocating for their advancement.

Access to networking groups is another way to foster supportive communities for female engineers across various disciplines. The fact that we’re seeing a drop off in engineers aged 35+ suggests an issue with long-term retention, potentially due to working patterns and location demands that are not compatible with personal commitments, for example, caring responsibilities. Internal networks can provide female engineering professionals with a forum for sharing resources, best practices and ideas for meeting these challenges.

4. Implement a more structured approach to promotions

The top reason engineering professionals want to leave their current job is because of a lack of future opportunities (41%) according to our 2025 Salary & Recruiting Trends Guide. Putting in place better structures when it comes to promotions can improve retention and also enhance the perception of fairness, which is essential to maintaining morale amongst your workforce. If the engineering sector is to retain female professionals in the long term, women need to feel empowered to progress their careers and know that the ability to do so is entirely within their own hands.

Nearly a third (31%) feel that more structured and standardised promotions are key to helping women progress in engineering, and there are a few steps organisations can take to help make the process fairer and more equitable. Providing opportunities to have those initial conversations, being transparent about timelines, clearly laying out the criteria needed to advance, scheduling regular updates, and arriving at decisions via consensus from a committee are ways organisations can hold themselves accountable and eliminate bias and ambiguity from the process.

These strategies for improving the recruitment and retention of women in engineering, while not quick fixes, can establish a more equal gender balance, which in time will also help to diversify leadership teams.

Looking to build a more gender-balanced workforce and secure diverse and skilled engineering professionals capable of enacting real change within your organisation? Submit an enquiry with us today.