Women hold less than one in four management positions in Catalan companies. In recent years, in fact, female presence in senior positions has stagnated: if in 2018 they represented 23.7% of management positions, in 2024 this percentage only grew by six tenths, reaching 24.3%. These are the main conclusions of the study Equality in companies: female presence, policies and perceptions, prepared by the Women, Business and Economy Observatory (ODEE) of the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce. From the observatory, they warn of a "false perception" on the part of entrepreneurs that gender inequalities in the workplace have been reduced, a feeling that contrasts with the reality of companies.
Only 21.9% of companies have increased the female presence in positions of responsibility in the last five years, according to data obtained from more than 2,300 surveyed companies. Compared to 2018, women in top management have increased especially in more feminized sectors, such as hospitality or commerce, while they have decreased in sectors such as construction, where they only occupy 14% of senior positions, almost three points below five years ago. In industry, the percentage remains low, and has only grown by one point, standing at 19.7%.
"We women have entered the world of business, and with this entry it seems that we have everything done, but female talent is lost along the way and does not reach positions of power," lamented the president of the ODEE, Sílvia Bach, during the presentation of the study, in which she stressed that men "have not entered the world of care and family reconciliation."
The existence of this glass ceiling is confirmed by the fact that the sector with the most feminized top management, hospitality, with 35%, has a workforce in which women represent 57% of the total, 20 points above those who reach management positions. Women, therefore, despite representing the majority of workers in this sector, do not access senior positions in the same way as men. In all companies, women only represent 41% of the total number of workers, 0.3% less than in 2018.
Despite these data, the study also finds that there is a "false perception" among entrepreneurs that gender inequalities have been reduced in recent years. A perception that they warn could demotivate the application of future measures in terms of equality, necessary to subvert the low female representation in management positions. The study shows that the degree of implementation of the equality policies consulted is between 40% and 76% in companies in Catalonia.
The three most implemented policies, which are already applied in more than 60% of companies, are flexible hours ---essential to combine work and family obligations---, the use of non-sexist and inclusive communication, and the existence of a harassment protocol, as well as an Equality Plan within the company. These last two, in fact, are mandatory measures for companies, according to current regulations. Even so, as the director of the ODEE, Carme Poveda, recalled, "the existence of an obligation is no guarantee of success or real change in the image of top management, especially if they are applied only to comply with the law and their real application is not reviewed."
Conversely, the least applied policies are those of a voluntary nature, which are not imposed by existing regulations, such as the application of European working hours ---continuous working day starting before 9 am and ending at 5 pm---, which is present in less than half of the companies surveyed, or the promotion of teleworking. Although 40% of companies promote remote work ---15 points higher than in 2018, also due to the effect of the pandemic---, Poveda recalled that it is important to apply remote work equally between both genders, since when there are minor children in charge, more women than men use teleworking to reconcile.
One of the data points that most concerns the ODEE is the fact that 42% of the surveyed companies believe there is no discrimination against women in the workplace, and only two out of ten respondents acknowledge that this discrimination does exist. A perception that differs from objective data and which, according to the observatory, could lead to a halt in the application of measures to promote gender equality.
"The change in mindset has not reached companies," stated the president of the ODEE, who emphasized that, to reverse this, it is necessary to increase resources and, above all, promote gender training in all companies. "There are women with great talent who do not reach where they could, and this is a great loss for society as a whole," lamented the president of the Barcelona Chamber, Josep Santacreu, who argued that companies are "a reflection of society" and, therefore, must act as "role models to achieve a more just and egalitarian society."