Global HR headlines: Focus on diversity, but gender inequality prevails in the workplace

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Walt Disney elects its first women chairperson in its 98-year history.

Christmas parties kept in check by the latest Covid-19 variant. Accenture promotes an unprecedented number of women to senior positions to increase race and ethnicity representation in various countries and Walt Disney elects its first woman chairperson in its almost 100-year history. Meanwhile, a recent report shows that one in three women in the tech industry experience gender bias in the workplace.

Covid-19 curbs office Christmas parties
A number of big businesses are holding smaller Christmas parties within departments, rather than larger, company-wide events, reports the BBC.

About 52 percent of UK workplaces have decided not to hold a Christmas office party, according to a survey of 2,000 office workers commissioned by Covid-19 testing company Prenetics.

Uncertainty over the latest Covid-19 variant, Omicron, has added to safety concerns over large gatherings.

First woman chair for Walt Disney
Walt Disney has elected a woman to become its chairperson for the first time in the entertainment giant’s 98-year history.

Susan Arnold, who has been a Disney board member for 14 years, will succeed Bob Iger at the end of this year. She was formerly an executive at global investment firm Carlyle, reports the BBC.

Accenture aims for diversity at senior levels
Accenture has promoted 80,000 employees, with a record number of women and increased race and ethnicity representation in the US, the UK and South Africa.

The professional services company said the promotions, pay increases and bonuses announced across all levels this December “reflect our commitment to providing a vibrant career path to all of our people, and are a recognition of the tremendous difference they are making to our clients, their colleagues, our shareholders, partners and communities,” reports The Times News Network.

Gender inequality in the tech industry
A recent report from business management company New View Strategies shows that gender inequality in the tech industry remains a prevalent issue, with one in three women in the tech field saying they experience gender bias at their workplace.

After surveying 1,000 women working in the tech industry, 38 percent of participants say men are assumed to be more capable than women at their workplace. Thirty-eight percent of respondents also said they plan to leave their tech jobs altogether within the next two years. And nearly half of women surveyed say their organisations do not actively promote gender equality in hiring and culture.

Gender bias may show itself in many ways, but pay gaps are one of the most evident. Forty-three percent of survey respondents believe there is a gender pay gap at their workplace, but only 24 percent of women have discussed a pay gap with their coworkers, reports CNBC.

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