Are your IWD initiatives tokenistic?
IWD shouldn’t be a one-day priority, but a year-long affair. Here’s what truly championing women at work looks like.
As a business that is committed to gender equity and female advancement, this is how we feel about International Women’s Day: tired, uninspired and disillusioned.
Every year on March 8, we witness companies making a big song and dance out of International Women’s Day. But what we really need is active championing of female talent for the remaining 364 days. Arguably the best evidence for tokenistic, one-day celebrations is the persistence of the gender pay gap and a lack of female representation in leadership or executive roles.
In Singapore, according to a 2021 report by the Ministry of Manpower, the unadjusted gender pay gap was 16.3%. This means that women earn 83.7 cents for every dollar earned by men or women are working for free from November 17th. The report also found that the gender pay gap was higher for older workers and those in managerial and executive positions. In the US, the pay gap in 2020 was 16%, according to Pew Research Centre. This gap significantly widens among minority women: while white women get paid 82 cents for every dollar a man earns, Black women only earn 63 cents, Native American women earn 60 cents and Latinas earn 53 cents.
The numbers are telling.
Why your IWD initiatives are tokenistic
IWD shouldn’t be a one-day priority; but a year-long affair. Celebrating women and championing them in one-day or week-long initiatives fails to address broader systemic issues. The sentiment is there, but IWD initiatives so rarely move beyond performative gestures on social media. In fact, these tokenistic efforts are often a misleading facade that paints a false sense of progress, and masks an otherwise opposite reality.
A Twitter account called Gender Pay Gap Bot did the heavy lifting in connecting employers’ public declarations ahead of International Women’s Day. Here are some surprising revelations.
Replying to an official company tweet by World Vision about #IWD2023, the bot called out the humanitarian aid organisation for paying women a median hourly pay that is 16.7% lower than men's.
Ironically, in 2020, a company with a significant gender pay gap was Mothercare, a retailer specializing in goods for mothers and babies. In the UK, where it’s mandatory for companies with over 250 employees to submit annual reports on their gender pay gap, not only has Mothercare failed to do so, they pay their women employees a median hourly pay that is 13.6% lower than men's. What makes Mothercare’s pay gap even more awful is that women make up the majority of its workforce. (Unsurprisingly, Mothercare’s board is dominated by men.)
The corporate-led conversations around IWD also tend to focus on “allyship”, which has become a buzzword in the fight for gender equity. While it is important for men to support women in their struggles, allyship is not the sole solution for gender inequality. The problem lies in the societal structures that perpetuate gender disparity, and simply having men support women may not be enough to address these issues. Furthermore, allyship still places the burden of change on women, rather than on dismantling the systems that allow for gender inequality.
The brands walking the talk
We also want to celebrate the organizations that aren’t just empowering their female talent for one day, but investing in them year-round through actionable, impactful initiatives. When it comes to gender equity, these are the companies that deserve our kudos and have made strides in this area:
Salesforce: This US cloud computing software company has conducted a pay equity analysis to ensure that women and men are paid equally for similar work, and also implemented a Women's Surge program to support the advancement of women in leadership roles.
Intel: The technology company has set a goal of achieving full representation of women and underrepresented minorities in their US workforce by 2020. They have also launched a $300 million diversity and inclusion initiative to support this goal.
Accenture: The consulting company has set a goal of achieving a gender-balanced workforce by 2025. They have implemented a number of initiatives to support this goal, including a global parental leave policy and a program to help women return to the workforce after taking time off
Patagonia: This outdoor clothing company has long been committed to social and environmental responsibility. They have implemented a number of policies to support gender equity, including a childcare program for employees and a parental leave policy that includes all parents, regardless of gender.
What true advocacy and inclusivity look like
True inclusivity and genuinely championing women’s mobility in the workforce isn’t something you cross off the list one day a year. Here are actionable ways companies can champion women's representation in leadership:
Pay equity analysis – Conducting a pay equity analysis is a way companies can ensure that women and men are paid equally for similar work.
Flexible work arrangements – Women’s advancements in their careers often coincide with added responsibilities at home, whether that’s childcare or parental care. Studies show that women are 24% more likely than men to apply to remote roles. Companies can look to implementing policies that support women's advancement in the workplace in this regard, such as parental leave and flexible work arrangements.
Create an organizational culture of fairness – While policies that prohibit overt discrimination and harassment are an obvious non-negotiable, there are so many invisible biases at play in the workplace that disadvantage women. Companies can look to offering training about unconscious bias for hiring managers and interviewers and focus on internal mobility, especially for women.
Investing in programmes, resources and initiatives to champion their workforce – The #1 reason for high-calibre female talent leaving their organisation is a lack of meaningful development opportunities. Companies that take steps to break barriers, promote diversity and inclusion can create a workplace culture that is more equitable and help to promote women's representation in leadership.
Are you ready to do better and move beyond tokenism this International Women’s Day and beyond?
At Uncommon, we are passionate about supporting and accelerating female leaders in the workplace. Ensuring your female leaders feel supported and engaged is a key piece in improving employee retention, increasing performance and building a thriving work culture. Book a call with someone from the Uncommon team to explore how you can invest in your female talent.
Know a brand and company that’s investing in their female talent in a meaningful way? Join the conversation and give them a shout-out below.