While gender equality is still an issue that requires urgent attention from the pub and hospitality sectors, efforts have been made in recent years to level the playing field.
For example, as reported by The Morning Advertiser (MA), drinks giant Diageo was recently named in the Hampton-Alexander Review as the top company in both the FTSE 100 and in the beverage sector for representation of women at board, executive and leadership level.
According to the annual review, women make up 60% of Diageo’s board and 37.4% of staff members in leadership roles (executive team and direct reports), surpassing targets set by the Hampton-Alexander Review.
As well as being top in the FTSE 100 Overall Female Representation, FTSE 100 Board Representation and Beverage Industry categories, Diageo was also one of only two FTSE 100 companies ever to have majority female Board representation.
What’s more, in August 2019 the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) banned beers with discriminatory names or designs at the Great British Beer Festival, following a YouGov survey that found that more than two-thirds (68%) of female drinkers would be unlikely to buy a beer if they saw an advert for it they considered to be sexist.
CAMRA said the findings suggest British women had been actively boycotting products reflecting out of date and discriminatory attitudes and images associated with the beer industry.
Work to be done
However, while progress has been made, there remains work to be done in the pub sector’s push towards gender equality.
Data from more than more than 300 hospitality businesses reported on 1 April 2019 revealed that, on average, men working in the hospitality sector were paid 6.5% more than their female counterparts, despite a decrease from 8.5% in the 12 months prior.
What’s more, a report produced by Women in Hospitality, Travel and Leisure (WiHTL) in partnership with The MBS Group and PwC in October found that female staff and workers from ethnic minorities were more likely to have been furloughed, put on reduced hours or made redundant during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Guarding against unintended consequences: The Impact of Covid-19 on Gender and Race & Ethnic Diversity in Hospitality, Travel & Leisure, found that three quarters (77%) of businesses claimed that diversity and inclusion either remained a priority or became a higher priority since Covid-19, the issue has only been raised in board meetings at 15% of businesses since the outset of the crisis.
PwC research also found that a higher proportion of women have been furloughed, put on reduced hours or made redundant (65%) than men (56%).
On top of this, only 15% of businesses interviewed claimed to have measured the impact of pandemic measures on female or ethnic minority employees, while only 6% have measured the impact of redundancies, or potential redundancies.
30-under-30
As such, to celebrate International Women’s Day on 8 March 2021 and raise awareness of the remarkable people we have in the sector, The MA is creating a list of 30 inspiring women under-30 to highlight the next generation of leaders in the pub trade.
If you want to be included, or nominate someone who should, we want to hear from you.
Alternatively, if you don’t fall into this age category, we’d still love to know what International Women’s Day means to you and hear your views on gender equality within the on-trade.
Please contact Stuart.Stone@wrbm.com for more info.
