Women 'still facing discrimination at board level'

Female workers are still subject to discrimination at the level of corporate boards, new research has suggested.

Commissioned by the Government Equality Office - which is responsible for equalities legislation and policy in the UK - the study discovered that a so-called "old boys' network" still exists.

For this reason, while women have the educational requirements and necessary experience to sit on such boards, they remain underrepresented.

Responding to the findings, research author Dr Ruth Sealy said: "The report highlighted the appointment process to boards as remaining open to subjective bias due to a lack of transparency of openings and unclear selection criteria, particularly in the private sector."

Initiatives to improve boardroom diversity are required in order to tackle stereotyping at the higher levels of organisations, she added.

On a more positive note, however, minister for women and equality Harriet Harman claimed that Britain is "moving in the right direction" in terms of achieving equality for women in the workplace.
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25/11/2009 16:31

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