Women in Top Management in France: A Time of Change?

Abstract

France often falls between the gaps in the classification of welfare states and the position of women on the labour market. French women have reached relatively high levels of participation compared to Southern European neighbours, and have avoided the high use of part-time work common among some of its more Northern neighbours. In France there is a small gender gap in the proportion of women and men holding managerial (ISCO-1) positions but a rather large gap among political decision makers, along with a persistent gender pay gap (Meurs et al., 2010).However, one element France does have in common with its neighbours, both North and South, is the low share of women on executive boards; ‘conseil d’administration’.French women are increasingly moving into management positions, but France had around 10 per cent female representation at boardrooms level in 2009, just below the EU average (EC, 2010: 23).