According to research conducted by the CMI, 85% of women and 80% of men have reportedly experienced and witnessed gender discriminatory acts in the workplace.
A large number of employers are still finding it difficult to make a difference to achieving a workplace is gender-balanced. The ‘Blueprint for Balance: Time to fix the broken windows’ report, surveyed 856 managers and 25% said their peers and senior leaders actively promote gender initiatives. The report was published a day after the Presidents Club had closed due to the Financial Times announcing the harassment of their female hostesses.
Around 19% of junior and middle managers believe their senior leaders are focused on achieving a gender-diverse organisation. Management consultants, McKinsey, conducted a recent study showing 21% of gender-balanced businesses are more likely to outperform their competitors financially.
Even though the new pay transparency reporting regulations were introduced in April 2017, the research showed that around 8% of managers knew the size of their business’ gender pay gap. Worryingly, 41% of managers say their organisation doesn’t have a gender pay gap even though the average difference between male and female managers pay is 27%.
CMI chief executive, Ann Francke, stated: “Achieving gender diversity is a priority business performance issue – gender balanced companies financially far outperform their peers”.
“While we’re starting to see change, progress is stuttering. Employers have great intentions, but our report shows there’s still a yawning gap between the rhetoric and the reality of work for too many women” she said.
The CMI Blueprint for Balance report has shown that shockingly, just under half of the employees believe their organisation’s management culture doesn’t support gender balance. The report also highlights that less than 33% of managers give their employers top marks for effective pay and rewards, recruitment practices to promote gender diversity, and flexible working.
Managers need to fix the ‘broken windows’ that are preventing gender equality in the workplace. All of the actions, practices, and biased attitudes that women face need to be stopped. This will then allow businesses to create an inclusive workforce where both men and women are treated equally and can work to the best of their abilities.
As the recruitment stage is where small positive changes will be the most effective, employers should also promote a balanced recruitment ethic. This will ensure the company is hiring a mixture of genders; making the workplace fair and equal.
Giving employees the option of flexible working will help to improve the gender balance in a business. This is because females with children are put off working for an organisation if they can’t work flexibly. By adapting hours to suit the obligations of a busy home life, businesses can maximise on the female talent they attract to the organisation.
By promoting an inclusive workplace, employers portray a professional and appropriate image to their employees, customers, and shareholders.
If you need advice or have any questions on gender diversity in the workplace, please contact a member of the HPC team:
T: 0844 800 5932
E: help@highpeformanceconsultancy.com
Twitter: @HPC_HRservices