Elen Notley, Head of Engagement at WCVA shares highlights from our recent International Women’s Day (IWD) event with the theme ‘Give to Gain’.
International Women’s Day is an opportunity to celebrate women’s achievements and raise awareness of the inequalities Women still face. This year marked 115 years of the campaign and I can’t help but feel like we should be in a better position than we are as a society when it comes to equality.
Over the past few years, we’ve seen Women’s rights (among others) reversed, a recent study found that Gen Z men are more misogynistic than their Boomer relatives and Women’s health is still massively underfunded and undervalued. All these things make you question – are we going backwards?
So this year we wanted to look at what forward steps we can take as individuals and employers to break down barriers for Women in the workplace.
WOMEN’S HEALTH: UNDERSTANDING AND BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS
The first part of our event focussed on Women’s Health with Isabel Linton from Fair Treatment for the Women of Wales (FTWW) presenting on how health conditions can act as a barrier.
FTWW advocate for people with under recognised health conditions and raise awareness of the gaps between standard policies and real-life experiences. For many women and people assigned female at birth, they still feel unsafe and unsupported when it comes to disclosing heath conditions for adjustments in the workplace. Their users have reported feeling punished for taking time off for appointments and that there is a lack of empathy for non-visible symptoms.
The presentation highlighted conditions that can affect people on a day-to-day basis, including endometriosis, adenomyosis, heavy menstrual bleeding, fibroids, PMDD, perimenopause/menopause, autoimmune conditions and neurological conditions like ME or epilepsy. These conditions often take a long time to diagnose but even without diagnosis, they still fall under the scope of the Equality Act 2010, which is often overlooked by employers.
TIPS FOR EMPLOYERS
Isabel outlined practical steps employers can take to break down barriers and create genuinely inclusive workplaces:
- Co-produce policies with staff and seek specialist advice from external organisations
- Adopt the Social Model of Disability and train all managers on fluctuating conditions and lawful adjustments
- Flip flexible working to a default wherever possible
- Audit workplaces for accessibility: toilets, quiet spaces, temperature control, signage, and freely available period products (including in disabled toilets, not just the women’s)
- Remove structural bias – don’t wait for someone to ask before making positive changes
- Share resources internally and make support easy to access
These are just some of the steps employers can take which have a huge impact on individuals.
LIFT AS YOU CLIMB
The panel discussion on the theme ‘Give to Gain’ gave excellent insight into individual examples of Women who have inspired and lifted others and how we can all support each other.
Bethan Russel-Williams, CEO of Mantell Gwynedd highlighted the Welsh Women’s Peace appeal in 1923 where a group of Women organised a petition with 390,296 signatures (a seven-mile-long document) calling for international cooperation to prevent another war. This demonstrates the power of women coming together to create meaningful changes for the future.
Mentorship and individualised approaches to leadership were running themes throughout the discussion. Panellists spoke of the importance of encouraging mentorship both personally and professionally to help build confidence and guide development for women.
Panel members also discussed the benefits of adopting leadership approaches that focus on understanding the needs and circumstances of individuals. Adapting working patterns and task management styles to suit each member of staff can help get the best out of people.
WHAT THE DATA TELLS US
The panel also discussed the research led by CBI Wales and the University of South Wales on removing the barriers to leadership for women and the change that’s possible when we work together to lift women up.
The research highlights consistent challenges in women’s pathways to leadership in Wales, with a stark contrast between the pipelines to leadership men more often experience verses the obstacle filled routes that women regularly face. However, the panel noted that actually, the voluntary sector is leading the way when it comes to women in leadership roles and more flexible working arrangements.
NEXT STEPS
This year, WCVA have collaborated with the University of South Wales and CBI Wales to add an option for the voluntary sector in the latest Leadership Landscape Survey, to draw out comparisons between our sector and others. If you’d like to have your say, please complete the survey.
We will be highlighting the findings from this research later this year. To stay tuned, sign up to the WCVA newsletter.