Every year, on March 8, companies make an extra effort to fill their social media channels with images of the women working for them, supportive hashtags appear on posts, and many firms go around handing out roses to the female employees in their offices.
The run-up to the actual day is also the time of year, where ECS Group receives the most requests for interviews with its female managers. Why then, and not all the year round, asks the GSA.
What happens before and after 8 March? Does true equality exist in each company that so publicly celebrates 8 March, or is International Women’s Day nothing other than an opportunity to “Gender-Wash”?
ECS Group says: “It is through our sense of fairness and respect for our employees, customers, and partners, that we have established ourselves as the world’s leading GSSA. These professional ethics which characterise us and of which we are rightly proud, are deeply rooted in the values of ECS Group. This is why we have put in place a code of ethics and professional good conduct.”
On diversity, the company’s statute reads: “At ECS Group, we believe that differences between individuals are a great asset and that complementary profiles are a strength to build the future. This is why we cultivate diversity by enabling everyone to flourish and by making our attractiveness to talented young people a priority.”
Undeniably, 8 March is an extremely important reminder of how much women have fought for equal rights, and draws attention to the fact that, in many parts of the world, much still remains to be done.
At ECS Group, however, the GSA says the focus is and always has been on the individual, regardless of that person’s sex, origin, religion, age, political leaning, or any other potentially differentiating factor.
As it stands, in what is largely considered a male-dominated industry, the gender split across the 1,400+ people working at ECS Group today, is roughly 60% male, 40% female. Women are present at all levels of expertise in the group, from administration, to operations, commercial, various management levels, IT, digital, and legal, and equal pay is a given.
“Since the beginning, ECS Group has recruited on the basis of competence and motivation. Ambition and success know no gender, nor do our training programmes or remuneration packages. We pride ourselves on delivering exceptional performance across the globe, without exception. ECS Group is a global family where everyone has a voice and is encouraged to use it,” Adrien Thominet, CEO and executive chairman, explains. “We celebrate our employees all the year around, rather than over a given period of 24 hours.”
The company made the following statement: “Looking outside ECS Group, at the terrible events in Ukraine that have unfolded since February 24, our daily thoughts are with all those affected by this war.
“Today, in light of the broader meaning of International Women’s Day, we therefore pay tribute to all the women of Ukraine; those who have been forced to flee the country with their children, leaving behind partners, husbands, fathers, brothers, uncles, other family members, neighbours, as well as those women staying behind to care for the elderly or sick, or fight to prevent the takeover of their towns and cities.
“We salute your strength and bravery. Our thoughts go out to all mothers and sisters in both countries, who have lost loved ones in battle.”
