On Tuesday 12th of November, at the premises of Science14 Atrium in Brussels, PubAffairs Bruxelles hosted a debate concerning the issue of gender balance in the business decision-making process. The event was moderated by Ms Emily Waterfield, Chief Correspondent at Mlex, while the discussants were Ms Josephine Wood, Member of Cabinet of Vice-President Neelie Kroes, Mrs Astrid Lulling MEP (EPP/ LU) and Ms Marije Cornelissen MEP (Greens/NL).
In its first part, the event format allowed the discussants to answer a preliminary question which was posed in advance to the audience, namely: “Do you think that regulating the number of women in company boards is necessary in the EU today?”. In the second part, the speakers discussed in greater detail the ideas expressed in their preliminary statements, while the third part featured a Q&A session concluding the exchange of views. Finally, the preliminary questions were put to the audience for a second time.
Ms Waterfield started the debate by explaining the institutional path of the directive proposal on the issue of women in business decision-making positions and she questioned the audience in the first place. The audience responded positively to the preliminary question.
The three discussants then proceeded to deliver their preliminary statements. Ms Wood started by stating that Commissioner Kroes agreed that there should be more woman representation on boards. She went on to explain, however, that it was important that this issue was dealt by companies themselves, preferably at a national level.
Ms Wood continued by pointing out that the directive is not only about women, but about equal representation in general. In her opinion, one crucial issue of debate is the means by which the objective of enhancing women’s representation in the workplace is pursued, especially in terms of education and support from other colleagues. She explained how Commissioner Kroes is pushing to get more women to work in ICT. The real issue is attracting them into the sector and then keeping them.
Mrs Lulling started by describing her long-standing experience working on the issue of gender equality, which has led her to believe that the Commission’s initiative is not the most effective in promoting women’s cause. In her view, the scope of the “Women on boards” directive is restricted only to companies listed in stock-exchanges and, although the initiative has gained visibility, this fact will not suffice to attain its desired aims.
Mrs Lulling proceeded by stating that the discussion on discrimination against women should go beyond the mere board representation and be pursued within companies at all levels. For this very reason, in her opinion, it would be better to take positive actions such as the promotion of minimum requirements in representation.
Ms Cornelissen started by stating that the Commission proposal was necessary, as the issue of women’s participation in the business decision-making process has been unsuccessfully supported by companies. She added that current and past experiences until the eruption of the last economic and financial crisis, not only indicated that business self-regulation has hindered a diverse representation on boards, but also demonstrated the importance of business decision-making processes.
Ms Cornelissen continued by asserting that the issue of women’s representation should not be seen as an affirmation of any sort of gender hierarchy, but rather as the acknowledgement of the principle of democracy and equal representation. She observed that, although the number of women on boards in the European Union is increasing slightly, the projections of current figures indicate that the current improvement pace would not attain the goals of the Commission proposal.
A crucial matter of debate consisted of how to avoid an over-prescriptive and over-bureaucratic application of the principles of the directive.
As far as this matter was concerned, Ms Wood said that the solution should be sought within the companies selection and recruitment process. Ms Cornelissen noted that the directive does not introduce an actual quota as companies have no obligation to reach quotas, but rather to take measures according to the objectives described in the directive, whereas Mrs Lulling underlined the importance of awards, rather than sanctions, when regulating the issue of equal representation.
Another focal matter that emerged within the debate is whether the Parliament will be able to avoid a rejection of its draft proposal by the Council.
On this issue, Mrs Lulling stated that the Parliament stance risks encountering a minority block in the Council, and that the Parliament report as it now stands could be in danger of being excluded from the EU agenda. On the contrary, Ms Cornelissen affirmed her optimism about a positive Council decision on the Parliament’s report since the recent evolution of the European political landscape may allow such an outcome. In addition, Ms Wood emphasised that the plenary sitting still has to define the Parliament’s mandate before negotiations with the Council start and that it will be interesting to be present at the development of this issue.
The final part of the debate and the Q&A session covered the issue of: work and family life, the opportunity of regulating, according to the principles of subsidiarity, the solidity of the “Women on boards” legal base and the position of companies listed outside the EU.
Consulted again on the preliminary questions, the audience did not substantially change its initial attitude towards the matters discussed.
Do you want to deepen the issues discussed in our debate? Check our list of selected sources which we have provided for you
Women on boards, EUROPEAN COMMISSION – DG JUST
The role of the Directorate-General for Justice of “DG Just” is to ensure that the whole European Union is an area of freedom, security and justice
Women in ICT , European Commission – DG CONNECT
The Directorate General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology or “DG Connect” is responsible for managing the Digital Agenda
Women, men and working conditions in Europe, EUROFOUND
The European Foundation for the improvement of living and working conditions (Eurofound) is a tripartite European Union agency, whose role is to provide knowledge in the area of social and work-related policies
Publications, EUROPEAN INSTITUTE FOR GENDER EQUALITY
IGE is a European Union agency which supports the EU and its Member States in their efforts to promote gender equality, to fight discrimination based on sex and to raise awareness about gender equality issues
Diversity, HOGAN LOVELLS dedicated pages
Hogan Lovells is a global legal practice that helps corporations, financial institutions, and governmental entities across the spectrum of their critical business and legal issues globally and locally
Commitee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality, EPP Group website dedicated section
The Group of the European People’s Party brings together centre and centre-right pro-European political forces from the Member States of the EU
Get Women On Board, THE GREENS/EFA campaign
The Greens/European Free Alliance is a political group in the European Parliament made up of Green MEPs and MEPs from parties representing stateless nations and disadvantaged minorities
