Globally, the majority of health workers – those in constant contact with Covid-19 patients – are women. Moreover, women are more likely than their male counterparts to engage in low-paying opportunities in the informal economy and are therefore more exposed to a loss of income during lockdown conditions. 

As primary caregivers, many women have also had to take on additional responsibilities, like teaching, while schools and daycare services are closed. Studies also show that gender-based violence increases during periods of disaster and that internationally, women are generally in a weaker financial position than men.

As the economy gradually opens up and more people return to work in the radically changed environment imposed by Covid-19, it presents an opportune moment to reflect and ask: are we committed to real, sustainable action when it comes to corporate life? How do we ensure that the pandemic doesn’t fuel an increase in gender-based inequality? 

The corporate landscape 

Numerous studies emphasise the benefits of gender diversity in the workplace. 

Appointing women in top positions is empirically proven to be financially beneficial. A 2011 study by the US non-profit firm Catalyst, found there is a 26% difference in the return on invested capital between top-quartile companies (with 19% to 44% women board representation) and bottom-quartile companies (with no women directors). 

Women also exhibit many characteristics that are required to meet 21st-century organisational challenges. As countries and corporates grapple with ways to mitigate the spread of Covid-19 in the absence of a vaccine, while keeping the economy going, these challenges are likely to become even more profound.

In its 2019 Women in the Workplace study, McKinsey & Company notes that corporates are realising the benefits of gender diversity in the workplace, including having more women in leadership positions. However, the “broken rung” on the corporate ladder to the top continues to prevent women’s progress at scale. The obstacle starts early – for every 100 men promoted and appointed as managers, only 72 women are hired and promoted. 

This distortion gets worse at the top. A recent Wall Street Journal study notes that while the number of women leading the top 3,000 companies in the US has risen significantly since 2010, they still represent less than 6%. The picture is likely to be grimmer post Covid-19. 

At home, just over 3% of chief executives of JSE-listed companies were women in the year through April 2019, according to PwC’s Executive directors: Practices and Remuneration Report. 

The reasons for the lack of gender diversity at the upper corporate echelons are wide-ranging and continue to ignite heated debate. Many studies have pointed to unconscious bias as a critical barrier that needs to be specifically tackled. 

In her book “Lean In”, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg highlights one example of such bias. She cites an academic experiment where students are asked to rate the competence and likability of a man (Howard) and a woman (Heidi) based on the identical information contained in their CVs. While Howard and Heidi are considered equally capable, the students believed Howard to be considerably more amiable, while Heidi was described as “aggressive” and “selfish”.

This likeability penalty for assertive women is a fact that all professional women grapple with. The bias women experience is often not ill-intended discrimination (by men as well as women), but nevertheless omnipresent in inhibiting the progress of women if not properly managed.

In search of a solution

To change the dynamic and to ensure we do not lose ground during the Covid-19 pandemic, the corporate sector should go beyond the practice of target-setting and adopt a set of practices to truly promote women’s participation. 

Practically, it means being cognisant of the impact the pandemic may have on addressing the gender equality gap, while creating a constructive ecosystem that fosters growth and the development of women, even where the workplace may be home. This can be done in a number of practical ways: 

First, companies should be alive and empathetic to the way in which Covid-19 could impact specifically women, and ensure they are included in equal measure when it comes to planning and decision-making around the corporate response to the disease. Leave and payment policies should reflect an appreciation for women-specific situations during the lockdown. 

Investing in mechanisms to address unconscious bias in an organisation’s people and manager preferences when recruiting or promoting women in the workplace is also an important step. Teaching managers to recognise the unconscious bias against women through training, workshops and case studies can lead to a better interpretation of their behaviour and more acknowledgement for women’s contribution.    

Given the current societal expectations on women to carry most of the domestic duties, men, particularly senior men, can also provide important role-modelling to level the playing field. 

Furthermore, efforts to address the socio-economic impact of the pandemic should put women and girls at the centre.

At a time when many corporates are struggling to come to terms with the Covid-19 pandemic and fear a possible economic depression, tackling issues around this may seem like an additional burden in an already difficult environment. It’s not. This is not a case of women asking for a handout to get a seat at the table. There is strong evidence that women’s unique skill-sets are what’s needed to build truly future-fit organisations. 

This will be particularly important as corporates navigate their way through the pandemic. BM/DM