Women hold 10% of the board seats in large companies

According to the Impulsa study, only 76 of the 728 directors of the 100 largest companies are women.

The fifth Impulsa study, carried out by ChileMujeres, PwC and Pulso, using company data filed with the Financial Market Commission (CMF), found that 76 of the 728 directors of Chile’s 100 largest companies are women.

The report describes these numbers as representing a low level of gender diversity, especially if they are examined more closely. Almost half (47%) of the companies have no women directors. “Limited diversity is also seen in other spheres: 14% of women directors are foreigners and they are concentrated by profession: 41% are business administrators and, together with economists, account for 52% of the total,” says the report.

Out of the 53% of companies that do have women directors, 68% have only one (36 companies) and 32% have two or more (17 companies). The maximum number is three, which is the case of six companies: Provida, Metro and Polla Chilena de Beneficencia.

Out of the industries studied and the 100 companies analyzed, the retail sector has the largest percentage of women directors (17%) while the commodities and consumption sectors have the lowest (7%).

Francisca Jünemann, president of ChileMujeres, indicated that “boards of directors in Chile need to be looking at the new issues and visions that are generating the most impact on the value of companies around the world; they are human issues and matters of justice, such as equal pay, the selection and promotion of people on merit and the prevention of sexual and workplace harassment. This study is a contribution to the debate about the importance of the diversity of views and topics that a board of directors should begin to have and address.

To learn about the contribution of overseas companies to women’s inclusion, see this article.  

Source: Pulso