Poll: Nearly 9 of 10 women concerned about industry inequalities

Roughly nine out of ten women in insurance feel that gender parity is still an issue in the industry, according to an IICF poll.

Insurance News

By

Approximately nine out of ten women who work in insurance feel that the industry’s lack of gender parity is still a perceptible trend, according to a 2014 poll conducted by The Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF).
           
89% feel that gender inequality still exists in insurance, and either agree or strongly agree that the problem is worthy of “significant concern.”  The survey was conducted during IICF’s Women in Insurance Conferences series, which took place in four cities nationwide.
           
The women were divided on why these inequities are present. 35% believe that there are obstacles in mobility and advancement, whereas 23% contend that the problem lies in limited recognition from the C-Suite.
           
The numbers back up their concerns.
           
 According to a study of 100 insurance companies conducted by Michael Angelina, the Executive Director of the Academy of Risk Management & Insurance at Saint Joseph’s University, only 12.6 percent of boards of director seats were occupied to women in 2012.
           
Even worse, only 6 percent of top executive positions - 15 out of 250 – were held by female officials.
           
“The numbers are very telling,” said Angelina.  “The lack of gender diversity is very significant.”
           
The majority of attendees polled at IICF’s conferences consider the most effective way to bring women into leadership positions is through development opportunities, particularly leadership training and mentorship programs.
 
Angelina also notes that women should take advantage of shifting client demographic trends, and become leaders who can be more representative of their consumer base.
           
“This is a just a hypothesis, because I don’t have the facts to support it, but if you look at who’s buying life insurance or car insurance or homeowners’ insurance, 50 years ago, 90 percent of those decisions were made by males.”
 
“Today, that may be 50/50 – it’s definitely less dominated by males than 50 years ago,” he said.

You may also enjoy:

"Gender pay gap highest in US insurance industry"

"Women should pay more for insurance because 'maybe they're hypochondriacs'"

"The emerging female elite: Women in insurance"
 

Keep up with the latest news and events

Join our mailing list, it’s free!