The Women in Finance Charter is a commitment by HM Treasury and the financial services industry to work together to build a more balanced and fair industry. The Charter was launched in 2016 and has been signed by over 200 firms, representing over 90% of the UK’s financial services workforce. The Charter sets out five key commitments that firms must make to promote gender diversity in senior management roles.
The first commitment is to have one member of the senior executive team who is responsible and accountable for gender diversity and inclusion. This individual should have direct access to the most senior person in the firm and be able to influence decision-making. The second commitment is to set internal targets for gender diversity in the senior management team. Firms should also publish progress against these targets annually.
The third commitment is to have an intention to ensure the pay of the senior executive team is linked to delivery against gender diversity objectives. The fourth commitment is to promote gender diversity in the recruitment process at all levels, including senior management roles. Finally, firms should also commit to making the annual internal report on gender diversity publicly available.
The Women in Finance Charter has been successful in increasing the number of women in senior management roles in the financial services industry. According to research from HM Treasury, since the launch of the Charter, the number of women appointed to senior management roles has increased by almost 50%. This is a significant step forward in terms of gender diversity in the financial services industry.
However, there is still much work to be done. Despite the progress made, women still only make up around a quarter of senior management roles in the financial services industry. In addition, there is still a significant gender pay gap in the sector, with women earning on average 18% less than men.
The Women in Finance Charter is an important step towards achieving greater gender diversity in the financial services industry. It is encouraging to see that firms are taking action to increase the number of women in senior management roles, but more needs to be done to close the gender pay gap and ensure that women are fairly represented at all levels of the industry.