'We've failed on sexism in City'

THE Government has been forced to admit that it will fail in its attempt to get a woman on the board of every top company by the end of this year.

According to an investigation for Financial Mail by Manifest, the corporate governance research agency, 38 of Britain's top 100 quoted companies still have all-male boardrooms. Far from declining, this figure is likely to increase by the end of 2003.

Although women account for about 45% of the workforce in the City, companies listed in the FTSE 100 index still boast just one female chief executive, Marjorie Scardino of publishing giant Pearson, and one woman chairman, Baroness Hogg of venture capital group 3i.

Patricia Hewitt, Minister for Women and Trade & Industry Secretary, said: 'I am acutely aware of the lack of women and diversity in British boardrooms, which are still dominated by white, middle-aged men. This has got to change for economic reasons.

Limiting the range of people who can make it into senior positions means an organisation limits talent and performance and profits.'

The presence of women in British boardrooms is now back to the level of November 2000, when Solicitor-General Harriet Harman pledged to stop UK boardrooms being 'no-go areas for women'.

The lack of women's progress in top boardrooms will also do little to stamp out widespread discrimination in the City against senior female workers. Last week, London Stock Exchange chairman Don Cruickshank slated 'sexism in the City' over a malicious whispering campaign against his chief executive, Clara Furse.

Cruickshank, who will be stepping down as chairman at the exchange's annual meeting in July, said that a man would not have been treated like Furse.

Lawsuits claiming sex discrimination and harassment are at a record high. Last week, investment banker Andrea Madarassy lost her £1m claim against Japanese bank Nomura, which, she said, paid male colleagues bigger

bonuses simply because of their sex.

Madarassy, who no longer works for Nomura, also claimed she was discriminated against when she became pregnant and because she already had small children. Madarassy, who plans to appeal, claimed her working life was made 'impossible'.

Her accusations, which were dismissed, included claims that the bank ignored her requests to move a disk drive that was humming next to her unborn baby. 'The basis of sexism in the City is money,' she said, urging women to complain as soon as any discrimination happens. 'Money and greed is the motivation, whether we are talking about conscious or unconscious sexism.'

Jenny Watson, deputy chairwoman of the Equal Opportunities Commission, said she believed there was 'institutional sexism' in the City, but that high profile legal actions, league tables of women directors and the recent Higgs review of good boardroom practice would eventually start to have an effect. 'I do think there is a culture of sexism in the City,' she said, 'and it is changing more slowly than elsewhere. But I am also optimistic. I think we have enough initiatives to make a difference.'