The gender diversity divide: “I don’t see what the problem is” say the men

18 per cent of men compared to 45 per cent of women think that equally capable male and female colleagues are not paid or rewarded in an equal manner
21 per cent of men compared to 48 per cent of women do not believe that the same career opportunities are available to all, regardless of gender
Just 9 per cent of respondents believe gender quotas can have a big impact; instead flexible working and cultural change are key

Women are less likely than their male co-workers to believe that pay equality and equal opportunities exist for both genders in the workplace, according to a new survey by recruiting experts Hays.

Hays, an organisation known for supporting the advancement of women in the workplace, says that although progress is being made, gender diversity remains a business critical issue.

In the Hays global survey of almost6,000 people, released for International Women’s Day on Sunday 8th March, 18 per cent of men think that equally capable male and female workers are not paid or rewarded equally, compared to 45 per cent of women.

The survey also found that almost one in two women (48 per cent) compared to one in five men (21 per cent) say that the same career opportunities are not open to equally capable colleagues of both genders.

What did people think would improve gender diversity?

‘Make It Happen’ is the International Women’s Day 2015 theme, which calls for greater gender equality. To do that, almost one in two (44 per cent) of the survey respondents say that more flexible working practices would have the biggest impact on improving gender diversity in their workplace. This was equal to changes to workplace culture through education across the business (44 per cent), highlighting female role models (32 per cent), changes to organisational policy (32 per cent), changes to government policy (27 per cent) and better board backing for diversity issues (26 per cent).

Just 9 per cent of respondents said implementing quotas would have a big impact, showing the vast majority believe that cultural change and practical measures, rather than formal quotas, are the answer.

"Our survey shows there is a major disparity between the views of men and women when it comes to equal pay and equal opportunities,” says Alistair Cox, CEO of Hays.

“We found that more women than men think the sexes aren’t paid or rewarded equally, while more than double the number of women to men say the same career options are not open to both genders.

“This suggests that most people in executive and senior management roles –the majority of which are men – still fail to see any inequality when it comes to pay and career opportunities between the sexes. This makes it difficult to see how we will see any significant advancement in this area while the majority of people in senior roles do not recognise it as an issue.

“Given all the research espousing the benefits of a gender-diverse workforce, it is a paradox therefore that we still see such a gap in representation and a disproportionately low number of women in leadership positions, supported and encouraged to reach their career goals, and paid equally. Many organisations now have specific programmes in place to address this issue, yet it has to be asked how successful these might be given that the majority of our survey respondents felt as though no imbalance existed in terms of pay or opportunities. Maybe this lack of recognition of the issue is the real obstacle to change."

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