This week, the Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM) of the EU Parliament debated the composition of Workers representation on board level.Even though the report by the FEMM Committee has no binding or legislative effect, it nevertheless contains interesting issues worthy of discussion. For example, the rapporteur could imagine quotas to be implemented and urges, among other, trade unions to appoint workers representatives, to take affirmative action and to ensure that the proportion of women on boards reaches the threshold value of 40%. Interestingly enough, there is no mention concerning the demand for a quota for employer representatives, but maybe one day there will be a separate report on this subject.

Diversity of workers representation on board level may lead to reducing the gender specific pay gap

The FEMM Committee debated the issue against the background that the equality of women and men is a fundamental principle of the European Union determined in the Treaty of the European Union, which belongs to the objectives and responsibilities of the European Union, and considering that gender equality and diversity workers representation on board level are a pivotal principle of democracy, leading to positive side effects for the economy, for example resulting in inclusive strategic decision making and in reducing the gender pay gap. However, it is worth mentioning that it is actually the Employment Committee of the EU Parliament, which is in charge; however, so far it has not presented a draft report.

Member States to implement quota

In her draft report, the rapporteur asks the Member States to initiate legislative measures to determine quotas, which shall ensure that in future a more balanced ratio of women and men will exist on board level. A similar demand to introducing a quota for women on supervisory boards, which recently failed due to the resistance of the Member States. The demand that trade unions had to take affirmative action to increase the number of Workers representation on board level is interesting, as it seems to give the impression that because the employer side is mentioned with no word, there is no need to make it an issue of the report. What is important is the fact that the issue is being debated. It is just a question of which proposals are the best. Anyway, the draft report will continue to be debated in parliament and certainly attract plenty of comments.

Further Information:

Draft opinion Workers representation on board level in Europe