Govt should adopt UN certification scheme to promote gender equality

Some 20 years after Singapore acceded to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, it continues to lag in fulfilling its treaty obligations, including the obligation to eliminate discrimination against women at all employment levels.

For instance, Speaker of Parliament Halimah Yacob noted in October that progress in women’s representation on corporate boards has been slow — rising from 8 per cent in 2012 to 9.7 per cent by end-June this year.

An opportunity to address this issue decisively has emerged.

The United Nations Development Programme’s Gender Equality Seal Certification Programme for Public and Private Enterprises was launched recently in the Asia-Pacific with a call for governments in this region to come on board.

Malaysia has responded favourably, and Singapore should do likewise, to take the lead in building a global hub and business centre with gender-equitable policies at the forefront.

To achieve government certification under the programme, companies would undergo a series of 10 steps.

These include a written commitment to gender equality, training senior management and staff on gender equality, and developing and implementing a company-wide policy and plan of action for gender equality.

This process would indicate gaps in employer practices and directions for improvement. For instance, companies might need to formulate and implement policies to explicitly address discrimination on the basis of gender and other characteristics like marital status and sexual orientation.

They may have to improve hiring and talent-grooming processes to address unconscious biases and ingrained “boys’ club” practices, conduct anti-sexual-harassment training and strive for pay transparency.

Although some companies have taken steps to create a more gender-equal workplace, there is room for improvement and the Government can play a part.

For instance, how many employers have implemented the Tripartite Advisory on Managing Workplace Harassment, issued by the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices and the Manpower Ministry to build on the Protection from Harassment Act?

Since the Act placed no legal responsibility on employers to end workplace harassment, the Government must do more to ensure that employers match the best practices it has promulgated.

The Association of Women for Action and Research’s Sexual Assault Care Centre received 62 complaints about workplace sexual harassment last year and 37 in the first half of this year.

Clearly, legislation alone is inadequate to protect employees if employers do not create a workplace culture of respect for women or lack proper procedures for dealing with complaints.

Adopting the Seal would support and incentivise companies to do their part in promoting gender equality. Certified companies could also be good role models for other private and public entities.