Gender Equality Charter launched

Developed by the peak lawyer body’s Women’s Advisory Panel, the charter features nine tasks that signatories must commit to completing in the next two years. The charter tackles why women in the country’s legal profession are so far behind men in the senior ranks. It aims to improve retention and advancement of women lawyers.
Signatories of the charter must appoint a senior-level individual, who will be responsible for meeting commitments made under the charter. These organisations must also:

  • implement unconscious-bias training for all lawyers and key staff and take action to address identified bias;
  • conduct annual gender pay audits and take action to close any gender pay gap;
  • encourage and support flexible working to assist all lawyers to balance professional and personal responsibilities;
  • regularly review areas of their practice with a gender equality and inclusion lens (e.g. recruitment, retention and promotion practices);
  • adopt equitable briefing and instruction practices;
  • actively work to increase gender equality and inclusion in senior legal roles;
  • collect and share with the New Zealand Law Society examples of practical approaches to gender equality and inclusion that make a real difference; and
  • report on progress against charter commitments every two years to the New Zealand Law Society.

https://www.nzlawyermagazine.co.nz/news/gender-equality-charter-launched-248795.aspx

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