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Forum discusses private sector’s activities to boost women’s empowerment in workplace
Forum discusses private sector’s activities to boost women’s empowerment in workplace
7/12/18
The Business Forum to support Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) kicked off in Hanoi on December 7, aiming to offer a space to 65 CEOs and senior executive management to learn about the benefits of gender-equal work environments and business practices.
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The WEPs introduced by UN Women and UN Global Compact present an opportunity to fill the existing gap by raising awareness among enterprises and integrate gender perspective in the business environment and practices. Almost 2,000 companies have so far joined the cause globally, including 49 entities from Vietnam.
Jointly held by the UN Women Vietnam and the Vietnam Women Entrepreneurs Council (VWEC), the forum discussed how the private sector can empower women in the workplace, market place and community to provide guidance to enterprises to start implementing the changes towards greater equality through the WEPs.
According to statistics from the General Statistics Office of Vietnam in 2017, women in the country constitute 48% of Vietnam’s total workforce. Yet, there are many barriers preventing women from equal access to economic opportunities and participation compared to men.
In private enterprises, women are less likely to be promoted and tend to fall off as the career ladder goes higher. According to Deloitte (2017), Vietnamese enterprises have less than 18% of women on executive boards and only 7% of companies are led by a women CEO.
Nguyen Thi Tuyet Minh, Chairwoman of VWEC emphasised that promoting equal opportunities for men and women in the private sector would help all genders to reach their full potential and creativity, thereby enhancing productivity and creating competitiveness and sustainable development for the enterprises. WEP is a powerful tool for enterprises to achieve them, she stated.
At the event, 15 companies signed the commitment to the WEPs.
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All comments [ 10 ]
Empowerment of women in the workforce means allowing women to have more control over their lives. It means giving them the freedom to make their own schedules, learn new skills and gain self-reliance.
Empowerment is created when the strengths that women already bring to the company are recognized and utilized.
Businesses that promote women empowerment and gender equality are more profitable. As more businesses take part in gender equality measures and see their revenue increase as a result, the case for empowering women in the workplace is likely to become a more recognized goal.
Allowing women more power and control in the workplace allows businesses to diversify decision-making, resulting in higher revenue.
Implementing gender-sensitive recruiting practices and appointing women to management and board of directors positions.
Businesses should invest in health insurance policies that include counseling; they need to respect all workers' rights to medical leave and counseling for themselves and their dependents.
Employers should encourage women to pursue nontraditional jobs and ensure that all employees have equal opportunities to get involved with mentoring programs.
Getting the word out about the company's women empowerment initiatives promotes the case for gender equality; it also means good publicity for the business.
In order to promote women's empowerment, UN Women suggests that employers spread the word within the community about the their commitment to inclusion and women's empowerment principles.
Businesses should make benchmarking reports and certifications available to employees and the public, a practice that allows businesses to be held publicly accountable and stand out from the competition, according UN Women.
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