Women in Digital has found that 43% of entry-level tech workers in Australia see an entrenched boys' club in their workplace. The finding comes from its national Driving Change in Tech 2026 study of 1,029 workers.
The research suggests concerns about workplace culture are now strongest at the start of a career. Last year, perceptions of a boys' club rose with seniority, from 16% at entry level to 36% in the C-suite. This year, that pattern reversed, with the strongest concern among entry-level workers.
Workers considering leaving their jobs were also far more likely to report the same issue. Among respondents who frequently think about quitting, 66% said a boys' club exists in their workplace, compared with 30% of those who intend to stay.
The findings come as Australia works towards a target of 1.2 million tech workers by 2030. They also add to debate over how employers recruit and retain staff as artificial intelligence reshapes graduate and entry-level roles.
The study points to progress in some areas of gender equity, though not evenly across career stages. Career confidence improved overall, with 62% of respondents saying they could see a strong path for growth and promotion, up from 51% a year earlier.
Women recorded a 13-percentage-point increase on that measure. Even so, pay confidence remained weaker among women at the start of their careers.
Only 35% of early-career women said they felt confident asking for a pay rise, compared with 61% of men. The report described this as the widest gender gap recorded across any question in the research.
Culture gap
Holly Hunt, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Women in Digital, linked the results to a disconnect between formal workplace measures and day-to-day experience.
"It's telling to see that such a legacy culture persists today. We've spent years working alongside technology employers to build the policies and initiatives that support women, and there is real progress to recognise. But what the 2026 data shows us is that policy is not the same as culture.
"AI is also changing what the early stages of a technology career can look like. Not every employer is hiring graduate and entry-level talent in the same way they once did, which makes the experience of the people who do enter the sector even more important.
"You can have every policy on paper and still have a workplace that doesn't feel inclusive day to day. For employers, the next step is making sure those commitments are reflected in people's lived experience, in how they are treated, heard, supported and able to see a future for themselves in the industry," Hunt said.
Flexibility emerged as another area where policy and experience did not fully align. While 76% of respondents said their workplace offers flexibility that meets their needs, half of mid-career respondents said working part-time would hinder their progression.
Another 41% of mid-career respondents said having children would negatively affect their leadership opportunities. Those figures suggest access to flexible work does not always remove perceived barriers to advancement.
AI and access
The report also examined how workers view artificial intelligence at work. It found 77% of respondents said their workplace encourages them to experiment with AI.
At the same time, the study pointed to concerns about bias in recruitment systems, citing independent research showing AI hiring tools can infer gender through language and employment-gap proxies. That issue is likely to grow in importance as employers rely more heavily on automated screening and assessment.
For senior women, mentorship alone may not be enough to improve progression, the report found. It highlighted the role of sponsorship, where a more senior person actively backs an individual for opportunities and advancement.
The Tech Council of Australia has previously identified workplace culture as a factor in women leaving technical roles. Adair Robins, Head of Industry Programs at the Tech Council of Australia, said the findings help explain how those experiences vary across a career.
"The Women in Digital report delves into the important work of understanding how workers across our industry experience their careers.
"We know women leave technical roles at higher rates than men, and this report highlights the perceptions driving that trend at each career stage, from those just starting out to the most senior leaders. It's a must-read for anybody serious about creating greater gender balance in their organisation," Robins said.