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Other people's business

Quotas for women on boards: all the pros and cons in one place

The UK has just voted against an EU-wide quota.

By Martha Gill Published 17 September 2012 16:06

The first female doctor qualifies despite all male board. Photograph: Getty Images.

The UK is opposing attempts to impose a 40 per cent quota for women on all boards for companies listed within the EU, and has just recieved enough support to block it. According to the FT, a draft letter signed by nine labour and business ministers said:

We agree with the commission’s stance that there are still too few women on the boards of publicly listed companies

[But] we reiterate that any targeted measures in this area should be devised and implemented at national level. Therefore, we do not support the adoption of legally binding provisions for women on company boards at the European level.

The FT has reported that many businesses are opposed to female quotas, with Business Europe, the largest employers group in the EU, saying that they fail to address the real problems with equality in businesses.

It's a fraught issue, and over the last few years there's been much back-and-forth about whether quotas damage or promote women's interests. It's irritating to see the same arguments trotted out again and again, so here's a summary of some of the strongest in both directions:

Pros:

1. Here's a pretty strong one to start with: quotas are the quickest and most effective way to ensure more equal numbers of men and women on boards.

2. Quotas force the break up of elite circles that might otherwise remain unchallenged.

3. If women are promoted into positions of power, they can act as positive role models for others.

4. Once on the board, women are more likely to hire more women.

5. Quotas are not disciminatory, they simply correct existing discrimination. Is there existing discrimination? Well yes, if you a) believe that there are as many competent potential female board members as their male counterparts and b) take stock of the current imbalance in numbers.

Cons:

1. Quotas discriminate against the individual men who happen to be running against a woman for a seat.

2. If women are employed through quotas, they will be seen as "token", will be less respected and will have less power.

3. Quotas set women against each other, competing for a certain number of "women's seats", which might destroy co-operation and unity.

4. Instating a quota might lend businesses to view them as a ceiling rather than a floor on the number of women, stalling progress on equality in the long run.

So there they are. Have I missed any? Please leave a comment....

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Tags: women on boards

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10 comments

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Wed, 2012-09-19 00:21 — Mrs.Josephine Hyde-Hartley (not verified)

On this occasion I should prefer to adopt the EU stance. It's only a board after all. To me it does seem fitting that the broadest democratic tool we have available to the UK should be used to sort out the thickest bit of the monument of managerialism ie the membership of old fashioned boards.

Tue, 2012-09-18 22:33 — Antipode (not verified)

I still wish someone would explain to me how possession of a vagina is supposed to make a person more (or less) fit to be a board member.

Maybe fewer board members are women because most women have more important things to do?

Tue, 2012-09-18 18:35 — KateSB (not verified)

Another pro: research shows that diverse teams make better decisions. It is in the interests of companies and the wider economy to do this.

Tue, 2012-09-18 18:24 — Mr Moderate (not verified)

Everybody should be promoted on talent alone and not on gender. Women complain that the boardroom is sexist. It also works the other way. As a man try getting a job in a general office where it is either marjority or all female. You will be turned down every time for the simple reason that women don't want the dynamics of their workplace upset. A friend of mine works in recruitment and is oftn told by clients that their office is staffed by women and they don't want to change it. Any males that do apply for the position will be told that "other canadates more closely match their clients requirements." Therefore if we are going to have quotas then it should be across the board, not just at the top table.

Tue, 2012-09-18 11:46 — hugh markey (not verified)

Some women copy the worst in male behaviour. Rich South Korean women are buying sexual favours in the flesh-pots of Seoul, just south of the 49th Parallel. Do you recall the West fought a war so that these gals could go all democratic.
Do Marie-Antoinette or Catherine the Great ring alarm bells. And let's not forget Lizzy the First brought in the Poor Laws. Stopped the poor gadding about. Yes, we know Queen Anne is not responsible for today's Tea Party but what a 'gal'.
Towards the close of the twentieth century even the UK had a couple of super womenkind. Mrs T and Eddie Currie. Compassionate? You must be kidding.
And Dave and George has still got a 'mom' complex.

Unisex

Tue, 2012-09-18 08:31 — Alexa Joyce (not verified)

Is it a coincidence that Scandinavian countries have these kinds of quotas, and also survived the financial crisis better than the rest of us? Companies with more equal board participation have higher risk aversion than those with overwhelmingly male boards according to research. I see a lot of "mights" in the cons list, but haven't seen much research to back up the points.

Mon, 2012-09-17 20:51 — Pavlova

Mixed teams are more profitable according to Hilary Devey's recent documentary on the BBC. And in today's economic climate, the EU can't afford to ignore that.