Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • Maternity & Paternity
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
    • OHW Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • Maternity & Paternity
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
    • OHW Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

GenderLatest NewsCorporate governanceEquality, diversity and inclusionExecutive recruitment

Major investor takes stand on gender diversity on FTSE 350 boards

by Jo Faragher 17 Apr 2018
by Jo Faragher 17 Apr 2018 Women's minister Victoria Atkins has urged asset management firms to push companies on diversity
Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock
Women's minister Victoria Atkins has urged asset management firms to push companies on diversity
Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock

Legal & General Investment Management – one of the UK’s biggest investors in the stock market – has promised to vote against the re-appointment of chairs in FTSE 350 companies where women don’t make up at least 25% of the board.

The company manages almost £1 trillion worth of assets and last year used its shareholding clout to vote against 215 pay deals in UK companies, up 40% on the year before.

Gender diversity

Extend gender boardroom targets to FTSE 350: Hampton-Alexander review

Diversity policy and procedure

In its corporate governance report, it announced that it would use upcoming FTSE 350 annual general meetings to vote against re-appointments in companies where it feels there is under-representation of women in senior roles. LGIM has already voted against all-male boards in the US.

It said: “We consider a company’s workforce as important as its financial assets and expect that better policies and disclosures regarding diversity should be developed.”

According to research company BoardEx, 27 FTSE 100 companies have boards where women account for fewer than 25% of directors. More than 130 FTSE 250 companies also failed to meet this target.

The Hampton-Alexander Review, a set of Government recommendations published in 2015, has called for 33% of FTSE 350 board roles to be occupied by women.

In February, 27 global asset management companies signed up to the 30% Club initiative, which looks to promote more women into women into board-level positions.

The signatories said that they would consider voting against the re-election of the chair of the board or nomination committee where there has been a lack of commitment to raising board diversity.

Sacha Sadan, director of corporate governance at LGIM, told the Financial Times: “We have given people time. We started talking about this in 2011. We are in 2018 now.”

Earlier this year, women’s minister Victoria Atkins said it was up to major asset management companies to “nudge companies in the right direction” on diversity.

Jo Faragher
Jo Faragher

Jo Faragher has been an employment and business journalist for 20 years. She regularly contributes to Personnel Today and writes features for a number of national business and membership magazines. She won the Willis Towers Watson HR journalist of the year award in 2015 and has been highly commended twice.

previous post
Assaults on NHS staff increase 10% in a year
next post
Jobseekers more likely to apply to big brands

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

You may also like

Women in FTSE 350 leadership: ‘A lot of...

20 May 2022

Bald move: Tribunal was right in sex-related harassment...

17 May 2022

Gender equality facing growing backlash from male managers

16 May 2022

Lack of flexibility pushes half of women to...

16 May 2022

Women in finance: Aviva CEO slams sexist comments...

11 May 2022

Maya Forstater: What is a woman?

10 May 2022

Robin Moira White: What is a woman?

10 May 2022

Gender pensions gap: half of women expect to...

9 May 2022

Pay transparency: How organisations can break the taboo

5 May 2022

Avoid salary history questions in recruitment, guide urges

29 Apr 2022
  • The Search for Talent: Six Major Employer Pitfalls PROMOTED | The Great Resignation continues unabated...Read more
  • Navigating the widening “Skills Confidence Gap” in 2022, and beyond PROMOTED | Cornerstone OnDemand conducted a global study...Read more
  • Apprenticeships are the solution to your recruitment problems PROMOTED | Apprenticeships have the pulling power...Read more
  • What it really means to be mentally fit PROMOTED | What is mental fitness...Read more
  • How music can help to ease anxiety at work PROMOTED | A lot has happened since March 2020, hasn’t it?...Read more
  • Why now is the time to plug the unhealthy gap PROMOTED | We’ve all heard the term ‘health is wealth’...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2022

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2022 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • Maternity & Paternity
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
    • OHW Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+