(Brussels) MEPs on Tuesday set a continental target to increase the proportion of women on the boards of European companies.
Posted at 5:42 p.m.
Negotiators from the 27 EU member states and the European Parliament announced on Tuesday evening that they had reached a compromise on a proposal made by the European Commission, the European executive, in 2012.
“After 10 years, since the European Commission proposed this directive, it is high time that we break this glass ceiling”, reacted in a press release the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. “There are plenty of qualified women for leadership positions. They should be able to access it”.
Under the new rules, EU countries must ensure that by the end of June 2026, listed companies have at least 40% non-executive seats allocated to ‘underrepresented gender’ on their boards of directors. administration, according to the statement.
For Member States that will impose quotas for their boards of directors, the obligation will be 33%.
Companies that do not meet these targets will have to “apply transparent and gender-neutral criteria” to address the issue and “prioritize the underrepresented gender” when two applicants of different genders have the same qualifications, the statement said.
Member States will also have to put in place a system of penalties for companies that do not comply with the rules.
Currently, only nine of the 27 Member States have national legislation regarding gender equality on company boards.
According to the European Institute for Gender Equality, the proportion of women on the boards of the largest listed companies in the EU has risen from 11.9% in 2010 to 31.3% today .