European Proposal to Get More Women on Boards Faces Test

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James Kanter – New York Times – Tuesday, 23 October 2012 (originally published 22 Oct)

BRUSSELS — A proposal to require company boards to be made up of at least 40 percent women is set to face a big test Tuesday when the European Commission plans to decide whether to keep the measure alive despite resistance from some countries and senior E.U. officials.

“Of course, there will be some opposition,” Viviane Reding, the European commissioner for justice, and the author of the legislation, wrote on her Twitter account Monday. “But Europe has a lot to gain from more diverse corporate boards,” she wrote, adding that she “will fight” for the law at the meeting.

Last week Prime Minister Mario Monti of Italy wrote in a letter to Ms. Reding that binding quotas would represent “a significant milestone at the European level to allow the effective participation of women in economic decision-making, removing prejudice and out-of-date conservatism” . . .

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