Diversity Equity And Inclusion In The Pharmaceutical Industry

Only 40% of NIH-funded clinical trials in 2020 planned to measure both race and sex outcomes. Meanwhile, women comprised 34.2% of the U.S. pharmaceutical manufacturing workforce in 2023, highlighting a persistent gap between workforce presence and clinical trial representation.

Key Takeaways

2.0% of pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing workers in the U.S. were Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander (2022, share of employment).
1.5x: Black employees in the biopharma sector reported higher rates of exclusion than white employees in 2022 (survey disparity ratio).
2.5x: companies with DEI tied to executive pay were 2.5 times more likely to report DEI targets (analysis).
38% of clinical trials across therapeutic areas in 2022 failed to report race and ethnicity in the submitted protocols (trial reporting deficiency).
15% of clinical trial publications in 2021 did not provide participant race/ethnicity information (systematic review).
7.5% fewer underrepresented participants were enrolled in industry-sponsored trials versus investigator-initiated trials in oncology (meta-analysis).
34.2% of U.S. pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing employees were women in 2023 (annual employment composition)
16.7% of U.S. pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing employees were Asian in 2023 (annual employment composition)
6% of surveyed biopharma leaders stated that DEI metrics affected their company’s hiring decisions (2021 survey)
1 in 4 employees reported leaving jobs due to a lack of inclusion (global survey result reported by Microsoft Work Trend Index, 2022)
73% of clinical trials in oncology had no explicit plan to include underrepresented racial/ethnic groups in recruitment materials (study design review, 2022)
24% of sponsor-submitted study documents did not include any language addressing enrollment of diverse populations (2022 protocol documentation audit)
2.3% of ClinicalTrials.gov interventional studies include a stated recruitment goal for racial/ethnic diversity (cross-study content analysis, 2023)
56% of respondents said their company measures DEI progress using employee engagement surveys (2022 workplace survey)
52% of organizations have a formal mechanism for employees to report discrimination or harassment (2019–2021 compliance survey result)

Clinical trials and workplaces still underreport diversity, and stronger DEI accountability is linked to better inclusion outcomes.

01 · Category

Diversity In Clinical Research11 stats

38% of clinical trials across therapeutic areas in 2022 failed to report race and ethnicity in the submitted protocols (trial reporting deficiency).

15% of clinical trial publications in 2021 did not provide participant race/ethnicity information (systematic review).

7.5% fewer underrepresented participants were enrolled in industry-sponsored trials versus investigator-initiated trials in oncology (meta-analysis).

31% of phase 3 oncology trials published between 2014 and 2020 underreported race/ethnicity (reviewed trials).

40% of NIH-funded clinical trials in 2020 included both race/ethnicity and sex as planned variables (study inclusion compliance).

2.6x: Trials that explicitly planned subgroup analyses were 2.6 times more likely to include diverse populations (analysis).

1,200+ study records in ClinicalTrials.gov were flagged for missing demographic data in a 2021 NLM analysis (record count).

28% of sponsors did not provide race/ethnicity results in results postings for trials completed by 2021 (posting compliance).

16% of trials in cardiology cohorts had no participants identifying as Black or African American (review).

22% of trials in neurology cohorts excluded Hispanic/Latino participants entirely (review).

48% of clinical trial protocols reviewed by a 2022 analysis did not describe recruitment plans to ensure diverse participation (protocol analysis).

Interpretation

Diversity In Clinical Research Interpretation

Under the “Diversity In Clinical Research” lens, the biggest signal is that missing or weak race and ethnicity reporting remains common, with 38% of 2022 clinical trials failing to report these demographics in submitted protocols and 31% of phase 3 oncology trials underreporting them from 2014 to 2020, even though trials that plan subgroup analyses are 2.6 times more likely to include diverse populations.

02 · Category

Clinical Trial Inclusion4 stats

73% of clinical trials in oncology had no explicit plan to include underrepresented racial/ethnic groups in recruitment materials (study design review, 2022)

24% of sponsor-submitted study documents did not include any language addressing enrollment of diverse populations (2022 protocol documentation audit)

2.3% of ClinicalTrials.gov interventional studies include a stated recruitment goal for racial/ethnic diversity (cross-study content analysis, 2023)

6.1% of drug trials reported outcomes for participants by sex at the primary endpoint (systematic analysis, 2019–2020 range)

Interpretation

Clinical Trial Inclusion Interpretation

Across clinical trial inclusion, only 2.3% of interventional studies on ClinicalTrials.gov set a stated recruitment goal for racial or ethnic diversity while 73% of oncology trials had no explicit plan to include underrepresented groups, showing that concrete inclusion targets are still the exception rather than the norm.

03 · Category

Policies And Governance3 stats

56% of respondents said their company measures DEI progress using employee engagement surveys (2022 workplace survey)

52% of organizations have a formal mechanism for employees to report discrimination or harassment (2019–2021 compliance survey result)

44% of public employers reported having an explicit DEI policy in procurement standards (2022 procurement DEI standards survey)

Interpretation

Policies And Governance Interpretation

Across Policies and Governance in pharma, just 44% embed explicit DEI requirements in procurement standards and 52% provide formal reporting mechanisms, even though 56% track DEI progress through employee engagement surveys, suggesting companies measure inclusion more often than they codify it and enforce it through governance.

Diversity Equity And Inclusion In IndustryDiversity Equity And Inclusion In The Big Data Industry Statistics

04 · Category

Workplace Barriers3 stats

19% of hiring managers in pharma reported encountering bias in promotion decisions in the last 12 months (2022 internal survey report)

1.8x: Black scientists are 1.8 times more likely than white scientists to report being overlooked for collaboration opportunities (peer-reviewed study, 2020)

2.1x: women in STEM are more likely to report biased evaluations than men (peer-reviewed study, 2019)

Interpretation

Workplace Barriers Interpretation

In the workplace barriers category, pharma is still seeing measurable bias in advancement and daily opportunity, with 19% of hiring managers reporting promotion bias in the past year and Black scientists facing 1.8 times the odds of being overlooked for collaboration while women in STEM report biased evaluations at 2.1 times the rate of men.

05 · Category

Workforce Representation2 stats

2.0% of pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing workers in the U.S. were Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander (2022, share of employment).

1.5x: Black employees in the biopharma sector reported higher rates of exclusion than white employees in 2022 (survey disparity ratio).

Interpretation

Workforce Representation Interpretation

In the workforce representation of the U.S. pharmaceutical industry, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander workers make up only 2.0% in 2022, while Black employees in biopharma face higher exclusion rates than white employees with a 1.5x disparity in 2022, underscoring ongoing underrepresentation and unequal experiences within the industry’s workforce.

06 · Category

Industry Overview5 stats

34.2% of U.S. pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing employees were women in 2023 (annual employment composition)

16.7% of U.S. pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing employees were Asian in 2023 (annual employment composition)

6% of surveyed biopharma leaders stated that DEI metrics affected their company’s hiring decisions (2021 survey)

1 in 4 employees reported leaving jobs due to a lack of inclusion (global survey result reported by Microsoft Work Trend Index, 2022)

2.5x: companies with DEI tied to executive pay were 2.5 times more likely to report DEI targets (analysis).

Interpretation

Industry Overview Interpretation

For the pharmaceutical industry overall, women make up 34.2% and Asian employees 16.7% of U.S. manufacturing workforces, yet the 2021 finding that only 6% of biopharma leaders say DEI metrics affect hiring and that 1 in 4 employees leave jobs due to a lack of inclusion suggest that DEI is still not consistently translated into day-to-day workforce decisions.

report visual · Key figures

Gaps in demographic reporting persist across trial documentation and postings

Across years of protocol and results review, a sizable share of trials and sponsors fail to report race/ethnicity information or describe recruitment plans to ensure diverse participation.

38%

38% of clinical trials across therapeutic areas in 2022 failed to report race and ethnicity in the submitted protocols (

15%

15% of clinical trial publications in 2021 did not provide participant race/ethnicity information (systematic review).

28%

28% of sponsors did not provide race/ethnicity results in results postings for trials completed by 2021 (posting complia

48%

48% of clinical trial protocols reviewed by a 2022 analysis did not describe recruitment plans to ensure diverse partici

2.3%

2.3% of ClinicalTrials.gov interventional studies include a stated recruitment goal for racial/ethnic diversity (cross-s

source-verifiedjamanetwork.com · ncbi.nlm.nih.gov2023

Reference

Cite This Report

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APA

Stefan Wendt. (2026, February 13). Diversity Equity And Inclusion In The Pharmaceutical Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/diversity-equity-and-inclusion-in-the-pharmaceutical-industry-statistics

MLA

Stefan Wendt. "Diversity Equity And Inclusion In The Pharmaceutical Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/diversity-equity-and-inclusion-in-the-pharmaceutical-industry-statistics.

Chicago

Stefan Wendt. 2026. "Diversity Equity And Inclusion In The Pharmaceutical Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/diversity-equity-and-inclusion-in-the-pharmaceutical-industry-statistics.