Canadian HR Reporter Weekly

2 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2018 CANADIAN HR REPORTER WEEKLY Despite efforts to increase women's representation in the C-suite and on boards, Canada's progress has stalled, ac- cording to a PwC report, citing the country's ranking by the Organisation for Economic Co-operative Develop- ment (OECD) — 10th out of 33 countries. "Canada does have a strong work environment for women, but our progress has stalled," said Jean McClellan, national leader of people and organization practice at PwC Canada in Calgary. irty-five per cent of respondents to a PwC survey listed an employee's diversity (for example, gender, ethnicity, age and sexual orientation) as a potential barrier to career progression. And 36 per cent believe that taking advantage of work-life balance or flexibility programs negatively affects people's career, found Women in Work Index 2018 — based on a global survey of more than 3,500 working women, including about 250 Canadians. In addition, more than half of these women feel employers could increase gender diversity efforts and pay more attention to gender equality in regard to internal promotions. To close the gender gap, the report indicates two areas of focus: access to leadership roles for women, and pay inequality between men and women. Women earn $0.87 for every dollar earned by men, and while Canada's female labour force participation fares well compared to other countries (74 per cent), more focus on building stronger diversity and inclusion strategy and initiatives is needed to further boost the country's rank, said PwC. When employers make diversity and inclusion a top priority, it's not only the right thing to do but it makes good business sense, according to McClellan. "ere's mounting evidence to suggest a diverse workforce leads to more innovation and stronger financial results," she said. "Every step towards achieving greater gender equality will pay off." When companies make an effort to promote inclusion in the workforce, there is a 19 per cent increase in innovation revenues and a nine per cent hike in profit margins, found PwC. One reason may be the tie to innovation. "More innovative companies often have a competitive advantage," said McClellan. "Men and women approach and look at problems differently. And when you have that diversity of thought, it creates more opportunity to think about things in innovative and different ways... and allows you to get that competitive advantage in the market." e time for talk is over Often, people make assumptions, according to Michelle Branigan, CEO of Electricity Human Resources Canada (EHRC) in Ottawa. 'ere's not that many women with the right credentials,' for example, or the experience to sit on the board. 'Women just don't want to go into the trades; it's messy work.' 'Women, once they start having children — they don't want to travel.' ere's a lot of presumptions that are built into organizations and into those hiring decisions," she said. Progress around gender equality stalled in Canada: Report Benefits to bottom line should provide impetus for change, say experts Sign up for the Canadian HR Newswire today for free and enjoy great content from the publishers of Canadian HR Reporter. HR News at Your Fingertips THE LATEST NEWS THE BEST COMMENTARY DELIVERED WEEKLY FOR READING ON ANY DEVICE Visit www.hrreporter.com/ canadian-hr-newswire BY JOHN DUJAY

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