Background

In our November 2011 Public Company Update, we reported on Lord Davies' Monitoring Report regarding gender diversity and the Financial Reporting Council's ("FRC") two changes to the UK Corporate Governance Code (the "Code") to try and promote diversity, including gender diversity.

On 4 September 2012, the Business, Innovation and Skills Committee (the "Committee") announced that they will be commencing a new inquiry into women in the workplace. The Committee will be looking for submissions on the topics identified below.

Call for evidence

  • To what extent have the recommendations in Lord Davies' initial report published in March 2011 (the "Davies Report") been acted upon;
  • To what extent should investors take into account the percentage of women on boards, when considering company reporting and appointments to the board;
  • Why are there still so few women in senior positions on boards, and what are the benefits of having a greater number;
  • How successful is the voluntary code of conduct (a recommendation of the Davies Report) which addresses gender diversity and best practice, covering relevant search criteria and processes relating to FTSE board level appointments.
  • Whether the Equality Act 2010 and the gender equality duty imposed by s149 of that Act (the duty on public authorities, when carrying out all of their functions, to have due regard to the need to eliminate unlawful discrimination and harassment on the grounds of sex and to promote equality of opportunity between women and men) go far enough in tackling inequalities, such as gender pay gap and job segregation, between men and women in the workplace;
  • What steps should be taken to provide greater transparency on pay and other issues, such as workforce composition;
  • What has been the impact of the current economic crisis on female employment and wage levels;
  • How should the gender stereotyping prevalent in particular occupations, for example in engineering, banking, construction, and the beauty industry, be tackled; and
  • What more should be done to promote part-time work at all levels of the workplace and to ensure that both women and men have opportunities to gain senior positions within an organisation while working part time.

The Committee has indicated that written submissions should be submitted by all interested parties by close of business on Friday 5 October 2012 and should be sent as a MS Word document, by e-mail to biscommem@parliament.uk. If you wish your evidence to remain confidential, please contact the Committee staff.

Relevant statistics

One of Lord Davies' recommendations in his report was that all FTSE 100 boards should aim for a minimum 25% female representation by 2015. In March 2012, the Committee published a progress report entitled "Women on Boards" which reported on how the recommendations in the Davies Report were being implemented (the "Progress Report"). The Progress Report noted that 17 companies in the FTSE 100 had already reached the 25% target and a further 17 were between 20% and 25%.

Furthermore, the Progress Report indicated that as of the end of February 2012, within the FTSE 100:

  • Women accounted for 15.6% of all directors, up from 12.5%;
  • 47 female appointments had been made since publication of the Davies Report;
  • 27% of all board appointments had been taken up by women, up from 13%; and
  • Just 11 all-male boards remained, down from 21.

As at March 2012, some 21 FTSE 250 companies had likewise reached the 25% target and a further 28 companies were between 20% and 25% and, within the FTSE 250,:

  • Women accounted for 9.6% of all directors, up from 7.8%;
  • 26% of all board appointments had been taken by women;
  • For the first time ever all-male boards were in the minority, 112 companies, or 44.8%, down from 52.4%; and
  • 53 female appointments had been made since publication of the Davies Report.

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