The Times Top 50 Employers for Women 2022 have been revealed, with major brands such as PepsiCo UK and Ireland, Natwest and Tesco making the cut.
Other businesses include full fibre platform CityFibre, payments services firm Worldline, publishing firm Hachette UK, and construction business Wates.
Several law firms and financial services organisations were included, including Allen and Overy, Norton Rose Fulbright, the Financial Conduct Authority and Santander UK.
The award is run by Business in the Community (BITC), The Prince’s Responsible Business Network and The Times, in order to recognise and celebrate those organisations making progress on issues that affect gender equality through strategy, policies and culture.
Entrants were assessed on what they are doing to remove the drivers that enforce gender inequality, while this year included a further appraisal of the lived experience of female employees, to examine the translation between policy and practice.
After three independent rounds of blind assessment, a tie for the 50th place saw 51 organisations included on the 2022 list.
Katy Neep, gender equality campaign director at BITC, said: “The COVID-19 pandemic and the soaring cost of living are just some of the worldwide events that have had a disproportionate impact on women and are proof of how far we have yet to go on gender equality. Now is the time to push for further action, but without commitment from all employers, our goal to eradicate the inequalities gap and create truly inclusive workplaces for all women will only be achieved by some businesses, not all.
“The Times Top 50 gives us hope that we are making strong progress in our aim towards gender equality and in our 40th year we call on all employers to be bolder, braver and faster in achieving that goal.
“This year’s application process was the most competitive we have ever seen. These employers haven’t stopped when it comes to supporting women at work and they are a prime example of what business can achieve when they commit to making gender inequality a thing of the past.”
Caroline Nokes MP, chair of the Women and Equalities Committee, said: “It is essential that employers focus on eradicating gender inequality in the workplace and I take pride in knowing that these businesses have achieved so much to make work an equal place for all women. While there is still much to do, I congratulate these employers for their accomplishments in advancing the case for equal pay, progression and flexible working policies that support women in work today.”
Greg Mesch, chief executive officer (CEO) at CityFibre, added: “Creating and maintaining an inclusive and supportive culture is a central pillar in our strategy to help level up the UK’s digital infrastructure. That’s why we are thrilled to be recognised as one of the Top 50 Employers for Women for the second year running.”
While James Bain, CEO at Worldline UK and Ireland, said: “Our work will continue to provide more and more opportunities for our great women who have committed themselves to drive our change which is recognised in this prestigious award.”
Nikunj Upadhyay, inclusion and diversity director at Wates, added: “This recognition strengthens our commitment to drive positive action both within our business and the built environment sector more broadly.”
