Study on non-legislative initiatives for companies to promote gender ...

Gender equality initiatives 63
The “Label Égalité (Professionelle)” (equality label) is granted at the end of the
following process:
• AFNOR-Certification (an international private company) collects data from applying
corporations and checks whether they meet the following requirements:
Integrating gender equality to the culture of the organisation, i.e.: informing
managers, employees and their representatives about gender equality
issues, carrying internal communication, signing an agreement on gender
equality with social partners (“Accord sur l’égalité professionnelle entre les
femmes et les hommes”).
Ensuring gender equality in general and HR management: i.e. to reinforce
equality of access by women and men to training, and provide an analysis
from indicators of working conditions and training for women and men.
Organisations over 600 employees must take measures towards equal
representation of women and men in governing bodies.
Parenthood must be accommodated with through at least two measures:
organising time schedules and working conditions which are congruent with
family life; jointly anticipating the departure and return of employees on
parent leave.
Applicants must fill out reports accounting for their actions and commitments
regarding those fields and enclose their “rapport annuel de situation
comparée des conditions générales d’emploi et de formation des femmes et
des hommes” 24 to their application.
• A division of the Ministry of social affairs (“Bureau égalité professionnelle” du
“Service des droits des femmes et de l’égalité”, au Ministère du Travail, des
Relations sociales, de la Famille, de la Solidarité et de la Ville) evaluates chances
for the company to be awarded the label by the commission. The “Bureau égalité
professionnelle” works together in an informal way with one or two representatives
of social partners.
• A commission puts forward an opinion on whether or not the company should be
awarded the label. The commission may make recommendations of improvements
to companies which are granted the label. The commission consists of five
representatives of the French government and social partners.
• AFNOR-Certification decides to grant or not the label to the applicant.
In Italy the ministry of labour has labelled organisations (enterprises, associations,
NGOs, public sector organisations) with the “Bollino Rosa – S.O.N.O. Stesse
Opportunità Nuove Opportunità” (pink stamp – S.O.N.O. same opportunities new
opportunities) requiring activities in the areas of career opportunities, remuneration,
work organisation and reconciliation after assessment of a commission of experts.
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In France, by law, every company with more than 50 employees must monitor their practices related to
gender equality through a yearly report which is produced by social partners. For each occupation
category (employee, executive, manager...) and on the basis of indicators, this report draws
comparisons between the respective situations of male and female employees in terms of hiring,
training, career development, qualifications, classification, working conditions and wages.