Glass Ceiling Shattering for Women in France

by Stacy Sheets
9to5 Atlanta Member

I couldn’t be more excited and proud of France as I am this morning. Their government just passed a bill which requires companies’ board members to consist of at least 40% women. Currently, the presence of women on corporate boards in France is less than 8% - amongst the lowest in Europe. The bill was passed to help with compensation and career advancement for women. Here’s the greatest part too - their government chamber who passed this bill was mostly men. Females are only 17% of this voting chamber.

Requiring a larger number of women on corporate boards isn’t just good news for highly skilled, advanced working women eager to grab one of these seats. It’s also likely to change how companies look at maternity and family/work life.

Other successful countries who have passed similar bills are Norway, Spain and the Netherlands. Other countries thinking of passing similar bills are Belgium, Britain, and Germany. I’d love to see the United States be added to that list. In corporate American, women constitute 15% of Fortune 500 companies’ board members.

For more coverage on this topic and to learn about how French company L’Oreal incorporates family and maternity benefits, check out this story on NPR:
http://tinyurl.com/yc3mfp3