Several Dutch companies with a stock market listing are re-examining their diversity policies. This concerns companies that are also active in the United States, where different rules have applied since this year. This is reported by Eumedion, which promotes the interests of institutional investors.
The American government, which took office earlier this year, is very critical of companies that have policies regarding diversity, equality, and inclusion. The American president Donald Trump sees nothing in this, partly because he finds it discriminatory towards men and white people.
Some Dutch companies have already adjusted certain objectives in recent times, Eumedion notes. The association shows understanding, but emphasizes “the importance of equal opportunities, inclusive workplaces and equal pay for equal work”. It will therefore continue to hold companies accountable in this area.
One company that has adjusted its policy is insurer Aegon. It decided to stop setting a target for women in senior management positions. Another example is consultancy and engineering firm Arcadis, which adjusted its bonus criteria in the interim. For example, the company replaced a goal for gender diversity with a goal that is not related to diversity, Eumedion states.
Furthermore, diversity has increased in the top layer of companies with a stock market listing in Amsterdam, the association reports. For example, the boards of the AEX companies on July 1 of this year consisted on average of 29 percent women. That was 24 percent a year earlier. The share of directors with a different cultural background increased only slightly in a year, from 7 to 8 percent.