Gender Equity: Increase Representation of Women on Corporate Boards
September 6, 2021
The gist: California SB826 that passed in 2018, required that ‘by the end of 2019, CA publicly held corporations, need to have a minimum of one female on its board of directors’, and by the close of 2021, the bill increases that required minimum to 2 female directors — if the corporation has 5 directors — or to 3 female directors if the corporation has 6 or more directors.
When SB826 became law, 1,275 women needed to be added to public company boards in California. s
Womens' representation on CA public company boards has nearly doubled since 2018, from 766 to 1483
Today, more than 98% of California companies have at least ONE woman director
The #faxx:
There has been a greater correlation between stock performance and the presence of women on a board since the financial crisis in 2008. Companies with women on their boards significantly outperformed others when the recession occurred.
Credit Suisse conducted a six-year global research study showing that women on boards improve business performance for key metrics, including stock performance; companies with women directors on their boards outperformed shares of comparable businesses with all-male boards by 26 percent.
A 2012 University of California, Berkeley study found that companies with women on their boards are more likely to “create a sustainable future” by, among other things, instituting strong governance structures with a high level of transparency.
Since 2018, based on research indicating superior market performance, BlackRock recommends at least two women directors serve on boards of companies in which it chooses to invest.
Several European countries have instituted requirements mandating board seats on companies headquartered in their nations to be held by women directors. Germany, Norway, France, Spain, Iceland, and the Netherlands, among others, all have such requirements.
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