Are Mandatory Gender Diversity Targets Coming for Public Companies in Ontario?

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Jun 14, 2016

On June 14, 2016, Blake Cassels & Graydon LLP released an article on how the Ontario government announced that it has accepted all 11 recommendations set forth in Catalyst Canada’s report, "Gender Diversity on Boards in Canada: Recommendations for Accelerating Progress" (Report).

Catalyst Canada is a non-profit organization whose mission is to accelerate progress for women through workplace inclusion. The Report was commissioned by the Government of Ontario and is intended to advance gender balance on boards through providing recommendations to companies and business leaders as well as the Ontario government.

The Report notes that while some indications of momentum exist, with 15% of TSX-listed issuers having added one or more women to their boards between the 2014 and 2015 proxy seasons, there is still much progress to be made in terms of gender balance, as women currently comprise 20.8% of the members of such boards and half of TSX-listed issuers do not have any women on their boards.

Review the report and the article on the Blake Cassels & Graydon LLP's Web site.

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