From Barriers to Breakthroughs: Inclusion as a Catalyst for Women in STEM
We at HUL are committed to becoming a truly diverse and inclusive company. For us diversity and inclusion is about embracing differences, creating possibilities, and progressing together to build a sustainable business. In 2021, we launched our ED&I philosophy of #BELONG. We moved our focus from representation first to a circle of Inclusion where we focus on six principles – Brilliant Basics, Evolved Gender, Leadership, Other Diverse groups, Nation: Advocacy & Allyship, and Governance. We are building the capabilities of our business leaders and HR practitioners to be equity advocates, build awareness and create psychological safety in their teams. We have always believed that diversity in our workforce lends us the strength to win. We are proud of our journey on gender balance, with 45% of managers being women, a significant achievement from 26% in 2012. The underrepresentation of women in STEM and in R&D careers is a well-documented issue. The reasons that this gender disparity persists are complex and varied. It starts very early, in classrooms and at home where young girls aren’t encouraged to pursue STEM fields. Parents are not keen on their daughters pursuing STEM jobs with many feeling that tech jobs are more suitable for men. But pipeline is not the only reason for the low numbers of women in R&D jobs, large number of women graduate in STEM subjects but fail to move onto a STEM career compared to men. So, while over 40% of STEM graduates in India today are women, (one of the highest in the world), their share in STEM jobs is a mere 14 per cent. (https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1775315 ; International Summit on Women in STEM (drishtiias.com) ; Women Participation in STEM (drishtiias.com)). If we further zoom into R&D jobs in India, even in the private sector which fares better on representation there is approx. only 1 female scientist for 6 male scientists (16% representation) Women in STEM jobs face a lot of challenges including lack of role models, a persistent bias in the workforce combined with the pressure & stressors of bearing an inordinate amount of responsibility related to running of the household etc. So much so, that not just in India, all over the world, women leave STEM jobs at dramatically higher rates than women in other
Executive Director, HUL & Chief Human Resources Officer,
South Asia
occupations. At HUL R&D, in the last 5 years, fewer women have left than men and our employees, both men and women, have rated the working environment as inclusive in our annual engagement surveys. The company has been ahead of the curve in crafting and launching inclusive policies and practices for women; these include – Policy to support survivors of abuse, Support for fertility in medical policy, Parental leave policy, Virtual Childcare during the pandemic, A flexible leave policy, strengthened Maternity Support Program, state of the Art Day Care Facilities at both Mumbai, Bangalore offices and 16 factory sites and Travel Policy for working parents to travel with young children up to 2 years of age and a care giver. We also engage with academic institutions to inspire and support women pursuing STEM education – the Women in STEM scholarship for higher education in STEM fields, the Young Research fellows program for undergraduate students to take up research projects with HUL and Innovation café our national engagement program with STEM students where science meets industry through a webinar series. From 42.9% in 2020 to 50% in 2022 has been a huge achievement and our policies and fundamentals have been key enablers for this success At HUL, we have always focused on using the scale and reach of our business to create a greater impact in our own workplaces and beyond, even if it means tackling deep-rooted biases and inequality. To us inclusion is everyone’s responsibility, and it is important in all functions and at all levels in the organization.
