[K Population Strategy] '22% Female Executives' Samsung Biologics... No Internal Directors

Samsung Biologics Ranks 8th in Top 100 Companies for Gender Equality
Only Pharma-Bio Company Included, Reaches Top 10
5th in Closing Pay Gap... Female Wages Up 41% in 5 Years
Female Directors Limited to Outside Directors Remains a 'Flaw'

22.2%.

This is the proportion of female executives at Samsung Biologics, recognized as the number one company in the domestic pharmaceutical and bio industry, as of the end of last year. Among a total of 36 executives, including both registered and non-registered executives, 8 are women. This far exceeds the 5% female executive ratio of the top 100 domestic companies. In last year’s personnel appointments, Hong Yeon-jin, a woman born in 1982 who had just passed her forties, was newly appointed as an executive director, reaffirming the personnel policy of "boldly selecting and nurturing young talents who produce results and have potential regardless of gender, age, or years of service." Earlier in 2022, Kim Hee-jung, of the same age, also succeeded in being promoted to executive director.

On the 16th, Samsung Biologics ranked 8th overall in the '2024 Top 100 Companies Gender Equality Comprehensive Score' compiled by Asia Economy. It was the only pharmaceutical and bio company to be included in the top 100 companies list based on last year’s sales, and it succeeded in entering the top 10, reaffirming its status as the 'industry leader.' Based on last year’s business report, the company scored a total of 30.25 points by converting the proportion of women relative to men into scores for key evaluation items such as the number of regular employees (4.75 points), years of service (9.5 points), salary (10 points), internal directors (0 points), outside directors (5 points), and family-friendly certification (1 point).

Samsung Biologics received its highest score in the salary category. This score is based on the ratio of the average salary of female employees to that of male employees, earning 10 points out of 20. Although this is a half score, only four companies out of 100 received higher scores. The gender wage gap at Samsung Biologics stands at about 89.4%. This gap is also rapidly narrowing. In 2019, male employees at Samsung Biologics earned an average of 83 million KRW, while female employees earned 66 million KRW, showing a 79.5% ratio. However, last year, male employees earned 104 million KRW, and female employees earned 93 million KRW, with the average female wage increase rate of 40.9% far exceeding the male increase rate of 25.3%.

In terms of personnel composition, the overall proportion of female employees is 41.5%, and the proportion of female managers is also gradually increasing, with 27.3% in middle management and 37.5% in lower management positions. Since the company’s business heavily relies on contract manufacturing organization (CMO) operations, it can be considered a kind of 'bio manufacturing' company, which typically has a low proportion of female workers, so this is interpreted as a significant female representation. Among the company’s total 4,425 employees, 2,263 are production workers, exceeding half, with a male-to-female ratio of 1,487 to 776, meaning men outnumber women by about two to one in this role. However, in research and support roles, the ratio is nearly equal, and the proportion of female workers in production roles has steadily increased from 30.0% in 2019 to 34.3% last year, showing signs of breaking down the gender barrier.

Kim Eunice, an outside director of Samsung Biologics (former professor at Ewha Womans University School of Law), is discussing the topic "Women Leadership Session: Women Outside Director System" at the "2023 Asia Economy Women Leaders Forum" held last October at Lotte Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul. Kim is the only female registered director since the founding of Samsung Biologics. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

In particular, among newly hired employees last year, 54% were women, showing attention to creating jobs for women, and the proportion of female employees has been on the rise from 39.5% in 2021 to 41.3% in 2022, and 41.5% last year. Various efforts are also being made to foster female talent within the company. The company operates an internal women’s club called the 'Bio Women’s Club,' invites external female leadership experts for special lectures for employees, and runs mentoring programs between junior and senior employees. On March 8, International Women’s Day, the company holds events every year to hear the voices of female employees and scientists. The company stated, "We are creating a female-friendly corporate culture," and added, "We will continue to make various efforts to strengthen female leadership, including increasing the proportion of female executives and department heads."

However, there are no women among the internal directors, who can be considered the top management, resulting in a score of zero in this category. Since Samsung Biologics was founded in 2011, no woman has ever joined the internal board of directors. Currently, all three internal directors, including CEO John Rim and Vice Presidents Noh Gyun and Kim Dong-jung, are men. Even when including outside directors, the only female registered director is Eunice Kim, a former Ewha Womans University Law School professor, who was appointed as an outside director in 2020 and is currently active. This is believed to be influenced by the 2020 revision of the Capital Market Act, which prohibits listed companies with assets exceeding 2 trillion KRW from composing their board of directors with only one gender. At the '2023 Asia Economy Women Leaders Forum' last year, Director Kim commented on this, saying, "Although there is no penalty clause, it is encouraging that many listed companies are appointing female experts as outside directors to meet new standards," but also noted, "Many European countries adopt strict quotas, and these countries have female director ratios well above 30%."

Samsung Biologics supports women’s social advancement through various family-friendly programs and welfare systems after joining the company. In particular, for employees facing infertility, the company provides five days of annual leave, up to one year of leave divided into four periods of up to three months each, and infertility treatment expenses up to 1 million KRW per year. Additionally, the company offers various support measures for female employees’ comfortable childbirth and childcare, such as reduced working hours during pregnancy and childcare periods and the establishment of maternal protection rooms and other convenience spaces.

The number of employees taking parental leave, which can be used for up to two years, has been increasing every year, with 59 female and 30 male employees taking leave last year. Considering that 66 female employees took maternity leave last year, it can be inferred that a significant number of women who gave birth also took parental leave. Furthermore, between 2021 and 2022, all female employees who completed parental leave returned to the company, and 97% of them stayed with the company for more than one year after returning. Based on these efforts and achievements, Samsung Biologics has been recognized for nine consecutive years as an excellent family-friendly company by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family for exemplary operation of family-friendly systems.