Germany to clear way for women quota on company boards
Germany is poised to pass this summer a new legislation aimed at increasing gender equality on company boards.
The legislation, which the cabinet approved in January, could be passed in June after the coalition government’s parliamentary groups finally reached an agreement.
The new law affects around 70 companies and will force larger listed firms whose management boards have more than three members to include at least one woman.
Firms will be required to report on whether and how they aim to meet the quota. If they fail to give a good reason for not setting a target to include any women on their management boards, they risk a fine.
The legislation also creates a legal right for board members to take up to three months of parental leave and time off to care for family members without having to give up their mandate.
“Highly qualified women still come up against glass ceilings far too often,” Justice Minister Christine Lambrecht said. “There are still pure men’s clubs on the boards of directors who like to keep to themselves. This will come to an end in the future.”
Women make up one third of executive boards in Europe’s biggest companies
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen urged firms in March to promote more women to top positions, although efforts to introduce binding quotas for boards of European Union firms have stalled.
According to the European Union´s office for statistics, Eurostat, last year women accounted for almost one third of board members of publicly listed companies in the EU (28%), and for less than one fifth of senior executives (18%).
The largest share of female board members in the largest publicly listed companies is recorded in France (45%), followed by Sweden (38%), Belgium, Germany and Italy (all 36%) as well as the Netherlands and Finland (both 34%).
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