PRINTER'S NO. 1481
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
SENATE RESOLUTION
No.
255
Session of
2018
INTRODUCED BY SCHWANK, COSTA, DINNIMAN, FONTANA, LEACH,
BREWSTER, TARTAGLIONE, SABATINA, RAFFERTY, BROWNE, YUDICHAK,
HUGHES AND FARNESE, FEBRUARY 9, 2018
REFERRED TO RULES AND EXECUTIVE NOMINATIONS, FEBRUARY 9, 2018
A RESOLUTION
Encouraging equitable and diverse gender representation on the
boards and in senior management of companies in Pennsylvania.
WHEREAS, Equitable and diverse gender representation in the
leadership ranks of companies in Pennsylvania is essential to
enhance the competitive position of this Commonwealth in the
global economy; and
WHEREAS, Women in the United States earned 36.5% of master of
business administration degrees in 2012-2013 and 57.1% of
bachelor's degrees, 59.9% of master's degrees and 51.8% of
doctorate degrees in 2013-2014; and
WHEREAS, Women made up 47% of the United States labor force
and 52% of all professional-level jobs in 2012; and
WHEREAS, According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, women
made up 43.9% of the labor force in Pennsylvania in 2015; and
WHEREAS, In Pennsylvania in 2016, women held 17.2% of board
seats at Fortune 1000 companies and 12.7% of executive positions
in the largest 100 public companies headquartered in
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Pennsylvania; and
WHEREAS, Of these 100 companies, 41 have no women in
executive positions, 18 have no women on their boards of
directors, 41 have only 1 woman on their boards and 9 have no
women on their boards of directors or in their executive suites;
and
WHEREAS, In the Philadelphia region, where nonprofit
colleges, universities and health systems account for a
significant part of the regional economy, providing 37% of the
jobs in the City of Philadelphia alone, university and hospital
board seats held by women were 29% and 24%, respectively, in
2014, the last year for which public records are available; and
WHEREAS, The Catalyst Research Center for Equity in Business
Leadership issued an overview, Women on Corporate Boards
Globally, which emphasizes the benefits of gender-balanced
boards; and
WHEREAS, Catalyst's research series, the Bottom Line, found
that companies with more women on boards had better financial
results than those with fewer women and that companies with
sustained high representation of women board directors, defined
as having three or more women board directors in at least four
of five years, significantly outperformed those with sustained
low representation by 84% on return on sales, 60% on return on
invested capital and 46% on return on equity; and
WHEREAS, Women on Corporate Boards Globally cites findings
that companies with fewer women on boards had more governance-
related controversies than average; and
WHEREAS, The Forum of Executive Women, a membership
organization of more than 450 women executive leaders actively
working to leverage the collective power of women's leadership
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in the Greater Philadelphia region, has been issuing an annual
Women on Boards Report for many years on the status of women
leaders in top area public companies, with PwC serving as the
report's sponsor and research partner; and
WHEREAS, The Forum of Executive Women chose the theme "Forces
pushing for progress in the boardroom and C-suite" for the 2016
Women on Boards Report because experience shows that it takes
multiple strategies and multiple forces to get more women into
the ranks of leadership; and
WHEREAS, Female and male business leaders, advocacy
organizations, shareholders, investors, employees, customers and
elected officials all can be powerful forces for challenging the
status quo; and
WHEREAS, Women in the Workplace 2016, a comprehensive study
of the state of women in corporate America conducted by
LeanIn.Org and McKinsey & Company, emphasized that:
[w]omen are less likely to receive the first critical
promotion to manager--so far fewer end up on the path to
leadership--and they are less likely to be hired into
more senior positions. Women also get less access to the
people,input, and opportunities that accelerate careers.
As a result, the higher you look in companies, the fewer
women you see;
and
WHEREAS, Catalyst's overview, Women on Corporate Boards
Globally, indicated that research from many scholars and
organizations, including Catalyst, found that three or more
women serving on a board "changes boardroom dynamics
substantially," "enhances the likelihood that women's voices and
ideas are heard" and creates a "critical mass" of women which
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can lead to better financial performance"; therefore be it
RESOLVED, That the Senate find that the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania has a significant stake in promoting equitable and
diverse gender representation in the public, private and
nonprofit leadership ranks of Pennsylvania companies,
institutions and State and local government; and be it further
RESOLVED, That all nonprofit, privately held and publicly
traded institutions and companies doing business in this
Commonwealth undertake a commitment to increase the gender
diversity on their boards of directors and in senior management
positions and set goals by which to measure their progress; and
be it further
RESOLVED, That the Senate urge that by December 31, 2020, all
nonprofit, privately held and publicly traded institutions and
companies doing business in this Commonwealth have a minimum of
30% of women directors and measure their progress toward a goal
of equal representation of men and women in leadership positions
on an annual basis.
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