Let’s make some noise!
We’re busy getting ready to celebrate International Women’s day on March 8. It’s a day of unity, celebration, reflection, advocacy and action, and it’s been happening for over 100 years.
#EachforEqual is the message for 2020. The point being that each of us can actively choose to challenge stereotypes, fight bias and celebrate women’s achievements.
And while we’re doing all of the above, we’re also helping to #makeworkbetter. Because equality isn’t just a women’s issue, it’s also a business issue. An equal world is an enabled world, and gender equality is essential for economies and communities to thrive.
We think it’s important to shout this from the roof tops. It certainly isn’t a time to keep quiet. According to some sources, we’re technically still in the “quiet revolution” – the fourth phase of changes in the labour market that started in the late 1970s and continues to this day.
You see it wasn’t until 50 years ago that women really began filling up places at colleges and universities, entering a whole range of professions and expecting to be in long and fruitful careers.
MORE CHANGE NEEDED
It’s clearly good news then that more than 70% of women in the UK aged 16-64 are in employment these days, compared to only just over 50% back in 1971. But GDP figures (’Gross Domestic Product’, which provides an economic snapshot of how a country is doing) suggests that some 80% of businesses have more women employed in the lowest paid positions than the highest paid ones.
The number of women appointed into senior leadership roles in FTSE 100 companies has remained low for a second year running, just 36%. And the latest change in the number of women on the Boards of those businesses has been tiny – a rise of some 2%, taking it up to only 32.4% in 2019.
As a nation, we’re still lagging behind a number of our European counterparts when it comes to productivity. Could we get more women into a wider range of roles and help develop their skills, confidence and leadership potential. Could we create a fairer and more prosperous society while we’re at it? We think so.
ENGAGE AND INSPIRE
Ambitious, loyal, driven yet understated…being natural…an uplifting mind-set…funny, not afraid to take risks and bringing joy to others – these are just some of the things to celebrate about the women who inspire us most.
At Investors in People, we asked ourselves which women inspire and motivate us and why. The answers made us feel proud, happy and energised – there are so many amazing women in our world. Why not start a conversation in your workplace and find a way to build equality and #makeworkbetter.
