One Big Way to Improve Gender Equality in the Workplace

You don’t have to look far to wonder if we still have a long way to go to ensure gender equality in the workplace. As one report says, “Progress isn’t just slow. It’s stalled.” So, what will it take to finally have rights, responsibilities and opportunities unaffected by gender?

One significant way to help move the needle is to invest with your values to exert market pressure on companies to improve their performance on gender issues. How do you do that? Well, it’s easy, thanks to Gender Equality Funds.

Gender Equality Funds is a free, online tool that screens the specific holdings of thousands of the most commonly-held U.S. mutual funds against a database detailing individual company performance on 12 key gender equality indicators. These 12 indicators measure policies that demonstrate a commitment to gender diversity and gender balance in the overall leadership, management, and workforce of companies, combining into an overall gender equality portfolio score for each mutual fund.

How do you use the tool?

1. Right from the homepage, you can either click to find the top-scoring funds or enter the name of a mutual fund in the search bar.

2. Review the results by sorting the funds based on your top criteria and comparing financial performance.

3. Identify the funds that fit your investing needs.

4. Share the results with your financial advisor or retirement plan manager and explain that you want your investments aligned with your values. Check out this action toolkit for more information.

It’s that easy! Now you have the tool to apply a gender lens in evaluating mutual funds and the power to encourage fund managers to construct and offer investment vehicles that are sympathetic to gender parity.

Want to stay up to date with the latest news on gender equality in the workplace? If so, sign up here for updates on Gender Equality Funds.

Gender Equality Funds is As You Sow’s fifth Invest Your Values tool, joining Fossil Free Funds, Deforestation Free Funds, Tobacco Free Funds, and Weapon Free Funds.