Recent News and Research Updates

Women on Boards

• Washington DC: 14.7% for 184 public companies in DC region (DC, Maryland, and Virginia). The report also notes that only 22 companies have achieved "critical mass" with three or more women on their boards, while 42 companies (23%) still have no women on their boards. 
• Bursa Malaysia: 19.1% for Top 100 companies. Numbers are not so good when you look at all 928 of the listed companies: 372 (40%) have no women on their boards. 
• Alberta: 13% for 148 companies based in Alberta that are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. While this is an improvement from 11% in 2016, the report also notes that women filled only 25% of 2017 board vacancies, down from 32% in 2016.
• Canada: 14% for a sample of 660 companies listed on Canadian stock exchanges, up from 12% in 2016. The Staff Notice reporting these numbers provides an extensive review of women directors and executive officers in the three years since Canada began requiring more extensive governance disclosure as it related to gender equality. 
• India: 637 of the 1670 companies listed on the National Stock Exchange would need to appoint at least one woman as an independent director if recommendations regarding this requirement are implemented. India currently requires at least one female director for all companies, but does not specify independence. It's been reported that many companies met the original requirement by appointing a female family member to the board. 
• Wisconsin: 18% for the top 50 public companies based in the state, with only seven companies reporting no women among their directors.  

Still So Far to Go

• Women in the Workplace 2017 (Lean In/McKinsey) documents substantial differences in men and women and their view of equality in the workplace. Of particular note, as reported by many, is that over 50% of men in organizations where women hold just 10% of the executive positions believe women are "well represented" in their ranks. Think about it - table of 10, with one woman and nine men and women are "well represented." 
• 2017 Annual Corporate Directors Survey (PwC) also reflects sharp divides between women and men, with women much more likely to say that diversity - really, any kind of diversity - is important and that current efforts to increase diversity are too slow. (Full Report)

Gender Pay Gap 

• An analysis of total pay for CEOs in the FTSE 100 shows that while women make up 6% of the CEOs (6 out of 100), they earn only 4% of the overall pay.
• Job Search Intelligence crunched the numbers and found that among the top 2%  of earners, women make 39 cents for every dollar earned by a man (with average salaries: $145,000 for women and $371,000 for men). The analysis includes the numbers for each individual state.  
• Guy who gets it: Australian radio show co-host backs up partner's demand for equal pay with an offer to take a pay cut. 
• Fearless Girl statue firm faces its own gender pay gap challenge; chooses to settle claim for unfair wages for women and minority employees. 

In and Out of the Courtroom 

• Only 25% of attorneys in lead counsel roles in New York courtrooms are women.  
• There's not much good news in the latest report on status of women in law firms: women still less likely to advance to equity partner roles and are not represented among most firms' top earners.  
• This New York federal judge is one of a just a handful to formally encourage a more visible role for female attorneys in courtroom. 

No End in Sight   

• Sexual harassment in the workplace: rates, incidents of retaliation, cost to companies.
• What Were You Wearing? exhibit takes aim at age-old sexual violence myth.
• Great op-ed by Jessica Valenti: What If We Just Believed Women?
• Military still struggling with sexual assault in spite of ''zero tolerance.'' Latest report out of Fort Benning.
• A little history lesson: read about the critical role black women played in the early days of sexual harassment litigation. 

Quick Takes

• Women at the Top:  It hasn't been a good year for women CEOs in the S&P 500 as multiple departures have been announced. Since 2009, 19 female CEOs have stepped down; only three have been replaced by another woman.
• Why do women leave STEM fields? This study shows it takes multiple signals of lack of fit to drive women out of careers in STEM fields.
• Calling the shots: Rometty, Nooyi, & Barra take the lead in negotiating decision to ''sunset'' Strategy & Policy Forum (a White House advisory board). 
• Women's workforce participation in the US is being driven by women without a college education working in low-skill jobs. 
• Around the World: The most recent OECD gender equality report notes lack of progress on gender pay gap, burden of unpaid work, & violence against women as signs of persistent inequality.  
• I, Robot: Automation is so much more than an economic issue. Per usual, there's a gender difference. 
• Getting Schooled: work-family policies at Shenandoah University include a bring your child to work transition period from maternity/paternity leave; kids can also accompany their parents to work when child care falls through. 
• Not rocket science: GoDaddy increased promotions of women by 30% last year with this simple fix - they considered everyone who was eligible and not just the guys who raised their hands.
• The pictures tell the story: one PR campaign, 32 photographers, no women. Nikon has an optics problem.
• Who Has Your Back? Women dominate the insurance industry workforce but very few make it to the top.
• Who Didn't Get the Memo? Google segregates women into lower-paying jobs, stifling careers according to this class-action lawsuit.
• On Wall Street: women see fewer opportunities to advance, pointing to culture & bias as barriers.
• Good read: so few black women in corporate America; what holds them back, who's working on driving change.

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