Politics

Gender equality quotas at the last hurdle

Dateline March 6, Berlin. With the votes of the Christian Democrats and the Social Democrats, the Bundestag approved the Bill sponsored by Manuela Schwesig (Minister for Training, Professions and Family) and HeikoMaas (Minister of Justice), both SPD. The Greens and the Linke abstained on the grounds that the Bill didn’t go far enough. From 2016 onwards the ratio of women to the total number of the Supervisory Board members of the 100 or so Stock Exchange-listed companies that are obliged to co-determination must be no lower than 30 percent.. A further 3500 companies listed on the Stock Exchange  or subject to co-determination will be required to set themselves a flexible quota target by September 30.

The Minister for Women  has spoken of an “historic step”, in the process of gender emancipation and the beginning of a far-reaching cultural shift in the world of employment. The will have a favourable impact on millions of women in the world of employment. The Bundesverband der Deutschen Industrie (BDI) has again voiced severe criticism of this new legislation. A single rigid percentage for the Supervisory Boards is nothing more than an act of political symbolism of questionable constitutional validity. Vacant seats cause much more harm in the private than the public sector.