[2021 Gender Equality Index] "Increase in Female Executives and Male Parental Leave, Workplaces Are Changing"

Asia Gender Equality Index 48.35 Points
Including Items Such as Flexible Work System

Up 1.61 Points from Last Year
But Female Executive Ratio Still Disappointing

Jung Young-ae (right), Minister of Gender Equality and Family, is taking a photo with the award recipients of the "2021 Asia Gender Equality Index Award" at the "2021 Asia Women Leaders Forum" hosted by Asia Economy at Lotte Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul on the 27th. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] Now in its 6th year, the Asia Women Index has been renamed the ‘Asia Gender Equality Index’ to promote equal participation of women and men across all fields, including the economy. This year’s index also includes questions related to flexible working hours and caregiving leave to reflect the changing corporate environment due to COVID-19.

This year, the Asia Gender Equality Index scored 48.35 points, up 1.61 points from last year. The survey categories consist of workforce composition, human resource management, work-family balance, and organizational culture. The respondents were 92 companies across five industries: manufacturing, distribution & small and medium enterprises (SMEs), finance & securities, construction & real estate, and IT, pharmaceuticals & bio. Considering company size by industry, 30 manufacturing companies, 25 distribution & SMEs, 20 finance & securities and IT, pharmaceuticals & bio companies, and 5 construction & real estate companies were selected.

The survey results showed that the IT, pharmaceuticals & bio sector had the highest average score at 54.63 points, followed by distribution & SMEs at 50.83 points. Next were finance & securities at 45.07 points and manufacturing at 44.66 points. Construction & real estate scored the lowest at 43.02 points. According to the government’s Affirmative Action (AA) gender equality consulting diagnostic standards, scores between 45 and 55 are classified as ‘average,’ and scores between 55 and 70 as ‘excellent.’ Although there are industry-specific characteristics, the index shows a steady improvement trend.

On the 26th, Minister of Gender Equality and Family Jung Young-ae, in her congratulatory speech at the Asia Gender Equality Index Awards ceremony, stated, “Many companies have joined in creating an equal organizational culture, and as a result, supported gradually by policies and legislation, the number of female executives in senior positions is slowly increasing, and male parental leave takers are also rising, showing gradual changes toward gender-equal workplaces. The change we need in this era of transition is the expansion of women’s economic participation, which can be achieved through a gender-equal labor market and companies. The government will continue to make efforts.”

The average ratio of female managerial candidates among the 92 companies surveyed was 64.85%, more than twice the overall female workforce ratio (32.22%) and the female regular employee ratio (32.47%). The overall female managerial promotion rate was 48.91%, with higher rates in manufacturing (61.05%) and distribution & SMEs (56.91%). However, the female executive ratio remained low at 22.21%, about two-thirds of the overall female workforce ratio. By industry, the IT, bio & pharmaceutical sector had the highest ratio at 37.52%, while finance & securities had the lowest at 8.03%.

Jeong Young-ae, Minister of Gender Equality and Family, is delivering an encouragement speech at the '2021 Asia Women Leaders Forum' hosted by Asia Economy on the 27th at Lotte Hotel, Jung-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

The utilization rate of the reduced working hours system during pregnancy was 59.11% across all industries, with significant differences by sector. Construction & real estate had the highest rate at 86.99%, while finance & securities had the lowest at 42.35%. The return-to-work rate after parental leave for men was 100.78%, higher than that of women, suggesting that male parental leave is gradually becoming established, similar to female parental leave.

The newly added questions related to flexible working systems asked about the number of systems used by companies among six types: staggered working hours, selective work, discretionary work, flexible work, telecommuting, and remote work. On average, companies utilized 3.16 of these systems. The IT, bio & pharmaceutical sector used 3.47 systems on average, while construction & real estate used 2.50, showing relative differences in utilization. Due to the impact of COVID-19, 53 companies reported using family caregiving leave, showing a relatively high rate of 57.61%.

Seventy-nine companies operated leadership and career development programs for women, and the majority of companies (88) reported having grievance handling systems for issues such as sexual harassment.

Professor Sung Sang-hyun of Dongguk University, who was in charge of evaluating outstanding companies, said, “Selected companies commonly have a high proportion of newly hired women and are making efforts for fair personnel management. Companies facing challenges such as the spread of COVID-19, low birth rates, an aging society, and the Fourth Industrial Revolution can further strengthen their competitiveness through flexible personnel management.” Professor Lim Hee-jung of Hanyang Cyber University suggested, “Regarding the work-family balance category, it may be worth considering changing the term to work-life balance to better reflect current trends.”