The Times top 50 firms for gender equality 2024 has ranked the firms that this year have shown a high level of commitment when it comes to ensuring gender equality in the workplace. Among firms entering the list were EY and OVO Energy, while Anglian Water and Ofcom were no longer included.
Business in the Community (BITC), which creates the ranking table, examines applicants on the policies and cultural interventions they have put in place to address pay disparities, ensure progression, offer flexible working and family-friendly policies and tackle sexual harassment.
BITC said it was particularly interested in how firms addressed the risk that women from black, Asian, mixed race or other ethnically diverse backgrounds, were worst affected by changes wrought by the pandemic and the cost of living crisis.
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It stipulated that businesses must adopt proven measures to drive greater gender equity, taking action by: embedding flexible working; ensuring equitable support for parents and carers in the workplace; enhancing transparency around pay, including salary details on job adverts; tackling sexual harassment; and ensuring an intersectional approach, collecting data and addressing the barriers faced by different groups of women in the workforce (for example, women in low paid roles).
This year saw firms such as EY, Aecom, Assurant, British American Tobacco, Cap Gemini, Enterprise Mobility, OVO Energy, Standard Chartered Bank either return to the list or enter it for the first time. Among those dropping out after inclusion last year were Anglian Water, Three UK, Royal Mail, Sage UK and Ofcom.
OVO Energy said its inclusion on the list was recognition of its “highly progressive people offer for its 5,000 UK team members, encompassing a range of progressive benefits designed to promote wellbeing, flexibility, belonging and inclusivity”.
This included unlimited, fully paid compassionate leave as well as unlimited paid leave for any kind of pregnancy-related loss – from miscarriages to unsuccessful IVF attempts.
Other benefits included paid leave for “moments that matter”, meaning days off can be taken for life’s important moments, such as a child’s first day of school, getting married, or even taking a week to learn a new life skill; and “recharge” leave – extra paid leave granted after intense periods.
Mary Macleod, chief executive of business in the community, said overall there was still much work to be done, but “the progress being made to ensure equal pay, career progression and offering enhanced flexible working and family friendly policies shows that we’re on the right path.”
Charlotte Woodworth, gender equality director at Business in the Community, urged “employers to be bold, brave and swift in their actions to close the gender gap and foster inclusive environments for everyone, regardless of their gender.”
The Times top 50 employers for gender equality 2024 are:
- Accenture
- Addleshaw Goddard
- AECOM LTD
- Anglo American
- Assurant
- Atkins
- Aviva
- British American Tobacco PLC
- Capgemini UK
- Centrica
- CityFibre
- CMS
- Costain Group
- Deloitte UK
- Deutsche Bank
- DWF
- Emerald Group Publishing
- Enterprise Mobility
- Eversheds Sutherland
- EY
- Grant Thornton UK LLP
- GSK
- Hachette UK Ltd
- Ipsos
- Jacobs
- Kellanova
- KPMG UK
- Linklaters
- Lloyds Banking Group
- Marsh
- Mercer Limited
- Morgan Stanley
- National Grid
- NatWest Group
- Nestlé UK & Ireland
- Network Rail
- Norton Rose Fulbright LLP
- OVO Energy
- PageGroup PLC
- PepsiCo UK & Ireland
- PwC UK
- Sainsbury’s PLC
- Shell UK
- Sodexo Ltd
- Standard Chartered Bank
- Tesco PLC
- TLT LLP
- Vodafone
- Willmott Dixon
- Worldline IT Services UK Limited
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