Ajit Karn
There be at least 40% women in managerial positions at every publicly traded company that has more than 250 employees
According to a report in Fortune, the Spanish government plans to work towards its goal of achieving gender parity by attempting to approve a legislation that would require at least 40% of company boards to have female representation.
The Prime Minister, Pedro Sanchez, has stated that the gender quota legislation will be accepted at the weekly Cabinet meeting on March 7, after which it will be sent to Congress for further consideration. Before the celebration of International Women’s Day, he made the announcement while speaking at a gathering for the socialist party. According to a separate statement released by the government, the law will aim to ensure that boards have at least 40% members “of the least represented gender” and that they ensure that top management has a similar degree of parity. Additionally, the law will require that boards ensure that top management has a similar degree of parity.
According to Reuters, the Equal Representation Law will impose female parity requirements on election lists, corporate boards of directors, and the controlling boards of professional organisations. These requirements will apply to all three types of boards.
Pedro Sanchez, the Prime Minister of Spain, stated that the government was “not only taking a move in favour of feminism, but in favour of Spanish culture as a whole” when it made this announcement.
The legislation mandates that there be at least 40% women in managerial positions at every publicly traded company that has more than 250 employees and a yearly revenue of at least 50 million Euro ($53 million). In addition, the government will require that male and female candidates take turns appearing on all political platforms for elections, and it will establish a limit of forty percent for women serving in Cabinet positions.
Also read: UN: Gender Gap At Work Is Much Worse Than Expectation
The Prime Minister of Spain has referred to his socialist-led coalition government as a feminist administration on multiple occasions. During the month of December, Spain made history by becoming the first country in Europe to pass legislation providing for paid menstruation leave. In addition, legislators in the country have approved a measure that safeguards the rights of transsexual people.
Mr. Sanchez was quoted as saying, “If they constitute half of society, then women must hold half of the political and economic authority.”
