One of the issues on the Government’s agenda is improving gender equality in the workplace. This event will look at the draft Gender Pay Gap Reporting Regulations and gender diversity in the boardroom. The session is made up of two parts:

Gender Pay Gap Reporting presented by Jawaid Rehman, Partner at Weightmans. Jawaid will cover what will be required under Gender Pay Gap Reporting regulations; what organisations need to do in order to prepare; the risks associated with any gaps that are found; and how to deal with pay gaps identified. This section will also deal with equal pay claims that could arise on the back of the reporting requirements including: the different types of equal pay claims that can arise; the essential requirements in order for the claims to succeed; the types of defence that employers can argue where claims do arise; and the potential liabilities.

Diversity in the Boardroom. The UK Government advocates a voluntary approach to improving gender diversity at the top of organisations, but an EU Directive under discussion in Brussels would introduce a mandatory system of quotas for gender diversity in boardrooms. What do CIPD members think? A member of the CIPD Policy team will attend to provide an update on the research and policy work that the Policy team has been doing around encouraging greater gender diversity in the boardroom and will address some of the wider issues affecting female progression at work. The session will examine the pros and cons of both the UK and EU approach and how best to develop female talent pipelines.