This Thursday, 8th March, marks International Women’s Day.
It’s a moment in time when all around the world we come together to celebrate and focus on what we have achieved and the progress we still have to make.
This year’s theme for International Women’s Day is #PressforProgress. It’s a theme close to our hearts at Global Women.
We have a bold vision for 2018: it will mark the turning point for gender parity in New Zealand.
The impetus for change is coming from all sides. Globally, it has been driven by recognition that ways of working are changing rapidly and international movements like #MeToo highlighting the discrimination and harassment that inequities in representation allow to perpetuate.
This is supported by a continued storm of evidence supporting the economic imperative of diversity – particularly gender diversity – and the need for more inclusive environments in which different people can flourish. A changing workplace requires different skills and an inclusive environment – it is this kind of systemic change that supports less traditional ways of thinking and working that enables women to participate more fully in the workforce for a myriad of reasons.
Leaders and members of the public are showing an unprecedented willingness to listen. Companies are changing their policies. More than that, they are changing their culture.
We are seeing tangible progress.
As 2018 continues, organisations are committing to redressing the income inequality women face. They are addressing gender pay gaps, providing paid parental leave for both parents, and increasing the representation of women on their boards and at senior management roles in business, This is happening in business, sport, agriculture and other sectors across New Zealand. New Zealand’s senior leaders will make a continued and visible commitment to actively push for gender equality in their organisations.
It is 125 years since New Zealand was the first country to see women vote.
Let’s lead the world once again.
Let’s be recognised as an egalitarian and equitable society where men and women have equal rights and equal opportunities.
Pressing for progress is core to achieving our vision. If you share this vision, press for progress with us. I urge you all to take action this year to #PressforProgress to ensure that 2018 goes down as a revolutionary year in history.