The said rate was only 11 percent in Korea, which ranked 115th among 126 countries.(image: Kobizmedia/Korea Bizwire)
SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Korea Bizwire) – The rate of women holding positions as CEOs and company board members in Korea is one of the lowest out of 126 countries, according to a report entitled “Women in Business and Management: Gaining Momentum” published by the International Labour Organization (ILO). The said rate was only 11 percent in Korea, which ranked 115th among 126 countries. Syria, UAE, Egypt, Oman, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and Qatar were among the countries to rank lower than Korea.
Japan also ranked low on the list, as the rate was 11.1 percent in Japan. The ILO reported that traditional gender norms are still intact in Korea and Japan, making hurdles for women to overcome for successful careers in business and management.
While Korea saw some improvement since the rate in 2000 was 7.8 percent, the ILO said that the structural barriers for women in organizations have yet to be completely dissolved in Korea.
Jamaica ranked first on the list, as 59.3 percent of CEOs and company board members in the country are women, while the figures for Columbia and Saint Lucia were 53.1 percent and 52.3 percent respectively. The U.S.A. ranked 15th, while France was 26th.
Meanwhile, the ILO said that although number of women in executive job positions increased globally, only 4 countries among 44 developed nations, Finland, Norway, Sweden and Britain, had a rate of more than 20 percent of women members in the board of directors. The rate was 10 to 20 percent in 13 countries including the U.S., Australia, Demark, France and Germany. The rate was less than 5 percent in Korea.
By J.W. Choi (summerchoi@koreabizwire.com)
