Women Representation in Corporate Bodies: A Debate on Gender Quota

This report analyzes the use of gender quotas to promote women's representation in corporate bodies, examining their types, determinants, and arguments for and against their implementation. It outlines the different types of gender quotas, including reserved seats, party quotas, and legislative quotas, and discusses factors influencing gender diversity on corporate boards. The report presents arguments supporting gender quotas, such as eliminating structural discrimination and recognizing women's skills, alongside counterarguments, including concerns about overlooking male representation and the potential for quotas to be perceived as sexist. The conclusion emphasizes the need for gender diversity in organizations to foster radical changes and sustainable approaches. The report includes a bibliography of relevant academic sources.

Women Representation in
Corporate Bodies
Debate on Gender Quota

Scope of Gender Quotas
• Gender quotas are used to create equal representation in the corporate
bodies.
• It promotes gender equality .
• It is important to promote the position of the women community as a
whole.

Using Gender Quotas
• It provides legal opportunities to the women to claim their equal position in the
society as well a sin the corporate bodies.
• There is a tendency in the organizational bodies to elect the male members of the
organizations for the higher positions in the same.
• It provides the women to voice and claim for their deserved role in the
organizations.
• The gender quotas promote the representation of women.
• It tries to eliminate the structural discrimination that the women is facing from a
long time.
• It also enables the women to voice for their grievances that they are faced with in
the organizational structure.

Types of Gender Quotas
There are essentially three main Gender Quota Policies.
• Reserved Seats: These are seats for which only women can apply. It
essentially refers to the political seats reserved for the women.
• Party Quotas: These are effected by the political parties to pledge for
their female members, in the political offices.
• Legislative Quotas: These are mandatory provisions that are to be
made to the women of the society. These are legalised and is
applicable for al sectors. The former two quotas are essentially for the
political seats, but the legislative quotas enable the women to apply for
positions in all sectors of the society.

Determinants of Gender Diversity on
Corporate Boards
Studies have shown that there are certain companies which are more
likely to appoint a female member in the higher position or in the
leadership position.
• The study on the Spanish enterprises shown that the small and medium
enterprises are more likely to have a female member on board.
• The large organizations are less likely to appoint female members in
the leadership positions to decrease the risk.
• Studies have shown that in UK, the large organizations are more likely
to appoint female members in the leadership positions of the
organizations.

Determinants of Gender Diversity on
Corporate Boards
• Studies have shown that the countries with lesser number of female
figures represent the companies from a higher or leadership positions.
• It is observed that the companies managed or governed by its owners
are likely to have female figures in the leadership positions, and in
such cases the owners of the companies are male figures.
• Studies have further shown that the older companies, and the public
companies, and the traditional organizations are less likely to employ
female figures in the leadership positions.

Encouraging Gender Diversity:
Recently, in an approach taken by the government has made the inclusion of
female figures in the organizational bodies, mandatory, to ensure the practice of
gender equality in the organizational bodies.
• The equality approach is more concerned with the results than the achievements.
• Belgium, France, Norway, Spain, Italy, Israel, India and Germany have legalised
the quotas for women on corporate boards.
• In Asia Pacific, by the companies act 2013, it is now essential that all the
companies must have at least one female director in the system.
• In Australia, the Government of the country has made it mandatory that at least
30% of the work force should be female., and the compliance is enforced on the
basis of “if not and why not” basis.

• In America, the Quebec’s Bill 53, of 2006, is the only legislative
structure, that is currently in effect in Canada., which requires the
organization to practice the equal proportion of men and women in the
crown organizations.
• California has taken a similar kind of approach to increase the
involvement of women in the organization.

Arguments for the Gender Quotas
• Gender Quotas not only allow women of a particular farm to raise
issues that are present in that particular organization, but rather enable
the women of the society to raise voice against the issues faced by
them.
• Quotas will help the organizations to eliminate the structural
discriminations presented in the society.
• Quotas can be presented as a compensation for the barriers and the
prejudices that are presented in the society against the women.
• Quotas can be viewed as a way to provide privileges for the women of
the society who have been faced with discriminations all their lives.

Arguments for the Gender Quotas
• Quotas will enable the society to recognise the skills of the women.
• Quotas will enable the organizations to practice the fundamental rights
of the women, which they have been deprived from.
• Quotas will enable the representation of women in the leadership
positions in the organizations.
• The practice of gender equality will gain the organizations in many
ways. It can bring in radical changes in the system, as well as it can
bring in different perspectives into the organizational body, which can
change the organizational culture and conduct.

Arguments Against Gender Quotas
• Studies show that the practice of gender quotas promote representation of women
only, that is, they do not consider the promotion of the males in the organization.
• The general belief is that the women can not be good at leadership positions, they
lack the essential skills of leadership practices.
• The women are fit for the soft roles or soft skills of the organizations, therefore,
they are not fit for the directorial or managerial positions.
• Women are indecisive in orientation and very emotional in their conducts, which
are not fit for the organizational conducts.
• Researches have also shown that the achievements made under the quotas are not
achievements in true sense.
• The practice of gender quota is also believed to be sexist in orientation.

Conclusion:
The gender quota is in rigorous practice in the political sectors in most
of the countries. However, practice of this policy in the political sector
and in the corporate bodies are two completely different concepts, and
there is an increasing need of such a practice in the organizational sector
sin order to practice the gender diversity in the rightful way, which in
turn not only will enable the companies to gain more profit, include
radical changes, but also will enable the companies to include a
sustainable approach within the organization.