Google has published its annual diversity report, which shows the progress made by the company in its efforts to increase representation of POC employees.This report highlights the increase in Latinx and Black hires to 8.8%, up from 6.6% and 5.5%, respectively. This was a source of contention for the company in 2020, when Black issues surrounding racial inequality and injustice arose.There have been improvements in the number and quality of female employees, especially for Black, White, Latinx, and Latinx workers.Google credits its success to the programs implemented throughout the company to ensure fair hiring of new employees. Google is investing in STEM programs worldwide for underrepresented communities to improve the opportunities for its next generation of workers.Karina Govindji, Senior Director of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, states that there is no simple solution to tackling inequality. We know that we have made good progress but there is still so much to be done.The company has a problem with Black female and POC employees. Employer retention is measured using an attrition index, with 100 as the baseline. Apart from White women and men, attrition increased almost across all races/ethnicities, but Black women saw a dramatic increase, rising from 110 to 146.Native American women and men are also at high risk of losing their jobs, with a combined 127 and148 respectively. The percentage of representation is still very low at 0.8%.While Google's numbers have been shifting, more than half of its workforce is still White. Black and Latinx employees make up just 4.4% of the company's workforce, and 6.4% respectively. This is a challenge to Google's goal to double Black representation by 2025. These figures are the highest yearly increases in the last five years since Google's 2015 first report, and the trend is continuing to rise.Google also achieved 100% on the Disability Equality Index, which is a testament to its ability to accommodate people with disabilities.Govindji says that there is no single hiring strategy that will transform the representation of our organization or any other organizations. Govindji highlights the collaboration between the Black Googler Network (BGN) and Google's staffing department to recognize and grow Black talent all over the globe. "But we must recognize that the work we need to do cannot be relegated to the shoulders of underrepresented groups. That's been a challenge for us.
