BNP Paribas is gunning for 50% of new hires within its UK investment bank to be female.
The French bank has set a target of half of new hires in its UK global banking operation to be women, according to people familiar with the matter. It has already set a similar goal for those joining its ranks at the entry level.
BNP Paribas prime brokerage employee Stacey Macken successfully sued the bank two years ago for sexually discriminating on pay. It is now required to identify differences in compensation between men and women, as well as come up with a plan to change any gender pay gaps.
The French bank will focus first on the analyst and associate levels. However, it is aiming for gender parity across all levels of its business.
“Diversity is a core element of our business and HR strategy, as is the need to invest in identifying solutions to ensure the continued progress of our people at all levels of the firm beyond hiring,” said Emmanuelle Bury-Lucas, UK country head at BNP Paribas. “This includes talent and leadership programmes, the promotions process and the monitoring of metrics.”
READ Threat of pay audits could help banks close gender gap after BNP’s landmark battle
Many investment banks have long held a target to ensure at least 50% of graduate recruits are women. But female representation in the upper ranks remains sparse.
Exclusive research by Financial News has shed light on the small proportion of female employees in key, revenue generating roles. It found that just 10% of managing director and partner level dealmakers at top investment banks in Europe are women. The numbers were based on more than 1,300 senior dealmaking roles across Europe at companies including Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan.
UK gender pay gap figures are published annually at the behest of the government. However, despite a move to increase gender representation across the banking sector, those figures show there has been little change, with women still comprising a small proportion of banks’ highest earners.
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