Through concrete actions and gender parity on its work team, InvestChile promotes the inclusion of women in the workplace and encourages foreign companies operating in Chile to adopt non-sexist labor policies.
The InvestChile team is 58% women, with an average age of 44 years, 40% of whom have postgraduate degrees. Furthermore, women hold 50% of leadership positions, reflecting the agency’s commitment to gender equity and promotion of female talent.
In 2022, Karla Flores became the first female director of InvestChile, a management milestone for the institution created in 2016. That same year, Flores was chosen as one 100 Women Leaders in Chile. She has an undergraduate degree in economics and a master’s in applied macroeconomics from Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile.
«The gender gap is something we must address as a country—not only because it is the right thing to do, but also because it is the smart thing to do. Data shows that if the female labor force participation rate increased by ten percentage points, GDP would rise by four points, once. Women's contribution is essential to Chile's development,» said Karla Flores.
«Estimates show that for every 100,000 women who join the labor market, Chile’s GDP could grow by 0.65%,» she added, underscoring their important role in the country’s development.
However, the current reality is challenging: In Chile, only 52.1% of working-age women participate in the formal labor market.
Why don’t they participate? According to the National Institute of Statistics, the primary motive is permanent family reasons. In other words, they are engaged in unpaid care work.
«What knowledge-based economies need most is access to talent. As we know, talent is equally distributed across the sexes and social classes. Increasing women's participation in our agency and across all industries is essential for Chile’s competitiveness and economic growth,» Flores added.
Pay gap
The gender pay gap refers to the difference between men’s and women’s wages. It is calculated using the average difference in the gross hourly earnings of all workers and expressed as a percentage of their wages.
At InvestChile, the pay gap remains an issue. In 2024, mens’ hourly wage was 4.2% higher. However, this is an improvement from the 8.6% recorded in 2019 and well below the national wage gap of 25%.
Concrete actions for real change
The agency’s commitment translates into a series of measures and best practices. Thus, 96% of the InvestChile team has received training on gender equality.
The institution has also included in public bids criteria that favor companies with the Women’s Seal (Sello Mujer), granting them additional opportunities as suppliers to the State.
In keeping with its mission to promote and attract key foreign investment for the sustainable, inclusive development of the country, InvestChile promotes actions to raise awareness of and promote the best non-sexist labor practices by foreign companies operating in Chile.
Such initiatives highlight these companies’ contribution to quality employment in Chile, offering concrete examples of replicable measures to promote the inclusion of more women across productive sectors.
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