Rathbone Greenbank Review Investor Day 2018
These and other related workplace indicators are key factors that feed into our analysis of the companies in which we invest — and they also help measure how we are performing as an employer ourself. So do we have our own house in order? I’m pleased to say that the wider Rathbones group has been an accredited living wage employer since 2012 and has recently become a signatory to the Women in Finance Charter, an HM Treasury initiative aiming to increase gender diversity in the financial services sector. More recently, Rathbones has become a corporate member of an LGBT recruitment and networking hub in order to help the group become a more diverse and inclusive employer.
But, like many financial services companies, there is room for improvement. The publication of Rathbones’ first gender pay gap report in March this year highlighted that the senior roles within the group are held predominantly by men, for example. Steps are being taken to address this, including the introduction of programmes to increase female representation across the business, unconscious bias training and changes to our maternity and paternity policies. Within the wider Group, Rathbone Greenbank is proud to have long been at the vanguard of the drive for greater female representation in investment management with five women investment directors out of eight in total.
But good work is a broader topic with phrases such as ‘gig economy’, ‘zero-hours contract’, ‘in-work poverty’ and ‘living wage’ becoming more and more common in the media. The speakers at this year’s event explored how changes in the nature of work are bringing about both positive and negative developments for workers, companies and the economy — and consequently, for investors. They also examined how different organisations and initiatives are encouraging positive change for the working environment.
