WaterAid first international charity in UK’s Best Workplaces™ for Women
Melanie May | 9 July 2018 | News
WaterAid has become the first international charity to be recognised as one of the UK’s Best Workplaces™ for Women in the ranking published by Great Place to Work®.
WaterAid was placed ninth out of 15 medium-sized organisations (50-499 employees) to meet the criteria. The Best Workplaces™ for Women list, which was launched for the first time this year, recognises organisations that go beyond statutory requirements to ensure women are treated fairly in respect of pay, training and development opportunities, and that they are enabled to fulfil their caring responsibilities.
The charity has been improving its policies around maternity leave and flexible working, and is also working to promote women’s career development.
At the most senior level of the organisation, WaterAid has strong female representation; across the seven members that make up its global federation, five of the Chief Executives are women. In the UK, women make up 67% of the Directors team and the UK Board is gender-balanced, with six women and five men.
Rachel Westcott, Director of People and Organisational Development, said:
“We are delighted that WaterAid has been recognised in the first ever ranking on the UK’s Best Workplaces™ for Women.
“We seek to create an environment that is supportive to everyone, so it is great to hear that 95% of women at WaterAid say they are treated fairly, regardless of their gender. We trust our staff to do their jobs and we aim to create an environment that enables people to work around their other responsibilities outside of work, demonstrated by 87% of women agreeing they are encouraged to balance their work and personal life, and 93% stating that they are able to take time off from work when necessary.”
Great Place to Work® states that to qualify for the list, and organisation must meet strict criteria, including the following:
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- A minimum of 25% of the workforce are women
- A minimum of 25% of senior roles are held by women
- A minimum Trust Index score of 75% and less than 10% difference in the Trust Index between men and women
- Favourable/equal or maximum 1% difference between men and women in response to the statement ‘people in my workplace are treated fairly regardless of their sex’
Main image: WaterAid by Basile Ouedraogo
About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.