The directive on gender balance among directors of listed companies (‘Women on Boards’) is being wrapped up. The European Parliament adopted its position at second reading on Tuesday 22 November. This endorses the EU Council’s position (see EUROPE 13044/24) and paves the way for the legislation to enter into force.
The directive, proposed in 2012 and as amended by the EU Council and the European Parliament, stipulates that Member States need to have 40% of executive directorships held by women, or 33% if the target is extended to non-executive directors by June 2026. To achieve this, it relies “on the transparency and performance of selection procedures” as well as “effective, proportionate and dissuasive sanctions against companies that fail to meet their obligations”, said co-rapporteur Evelyn Regner (S&D, Austrian).
Lengthy compromise process
“The law we have before us today won’t solve [everything] but [it is] a step in the right direction”, welcomed co-rapporteur Lara Wolters (S&D, Dutch), stressing that the result was achieved through lengthy compromise discussions. Indeed, despite strong support in the European Parliament, the outcome of the directive has received criticism.
Conservative MEPs (ECR, ID) have condemned the principle of compulsory quotas as discriminatory. However, the European Commissioner for Equality, Helena Dalli, recalled that “the Gender Equality Index (see EUROPE 13049/14) [...] shows that at the time of the proposal, women represented only 12% of board members across the EU, compared to 31.6% today. And the share of women in business management ranges from 8% to 46%. The data shows that Member States which introduce binding measures [...] made the biggest progress, while the advancement triggered by voluntary initiatives was much slower and less sustainable”.
The Left, on the contrary, deplored a lack of ambition. For Manon Aubry (French), it is a symbol of “the EU’s inaction on gender equality: it took 10 years, and it was done in a watered down way”. The exclusion of companies with less than 250 employees from the scope of the directive has also been criticised.
Despite the reservations, no amendments were proposed and the position was approved without a vote. The European Parliament and the Czech Presidency will sign the directive on Wednesday 22 November. It will enter into force 20 days after its publication in the Official Journal of the EU. “Finally!”, summarised Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament.
To read the adopted text: https://aeur.eu/f/46l (Original version in French by Hélène Seynaeve)