Tools and Resources

WEPs Materials

Calls to Action  |  Events  |  Webinars

Coming Soon: The WEPs Gap Analysis Tool 

UN Global Compact, UN Women, and the Inter-American Development Bank are collaborating to develop a WEPs Gap Analysis Tool to support implementation of the WEPs, help companies identify gaps and opportunities in gender equality policies and practices, and benchmark progress. The development of the Tool is being supported by the Government of Japan, the Government of Germany, Itaipu, The Coca Cola Company, and KPMG. Learn More

 

WEPs Video

The WEPs video, Equality Means Business, features compelling business leaders and others from around the world who make the case for implementing the 7 Principles and the importance of realizing gender equality. To share the WEPs Video with your network or screen either the short (2.46 min) or long version (5.46 min) at your next event click:  Short Version | Long Version
To receive an electronic copy of the video, please contact the WEPs team.

 

CEO Statement of Support

The CEO Statement of Support encourages business leaders to use the seven Women’s Empowerment Principles as guide posts for actions that advance and empower women in the workplace, marketplace and community, and communicate progress through the use of sex-disaggregated data and other benchmarks. Signers underscore that equal treatment of women and men is not just the right thing to do — it is also good for business and needs to be a priority. Learn more.

لعربية | 中文 | English Español Français | Deutsch | 日本語 | Português | Русский | Srpski | Türkçe

 

WEPs Booklet

This brief publication highlights why Equality Means Business, providing context for the WEPs initiative and outlining each of the Principles in more detail.  Additionally, it highlights current business practices that advance the WEPs and companies’ goals, summarizes reporting tips to help any business get started on the path, provides facts and figures and defines gender terms.

لعربية  | 中文Deutsch | EnglishEspañol | Français日本語 | ລາວ (Lao)Português | РусскийSrpski | Tiếng ViệtTürkçe ქართული (Georgian)

 

Companies Leading the Way

Identifying the importance of gender equality to the business case, companies around the world have taken steps to advance and empower women. To view concrete business examples and actions, click here.

 

10-point WEPs Stakeholders' Statement: Partnering for Women's Empowerment - Equality Means Business

The 10-point statement outlines how business, the UN and Governments can scale up engagement to deliver for women and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Developed by the WEPs Secretariat and partner organizations with the support of the WEPs Leadership Group and its co-Chairs, the statement was adopted by acclamation by over 350 representatives from business, Government, civil society and the UN who gathered for the 2015 WEPs Annual Event, Unlimited Potential: Business Partners for Gender Equality, on 11 March 2015. 

 

Smart Principles, Smart Economics: How governments can promote uptake and implementation of the Women’s Empowerment Principles by business

Published by Ernst & Young, Smart Principles, Smart Economics explores how and why governments can promote uptake of the WEPs by business and outlines how business action to advance gender equality supports the achievement of  gender equality and sustainable development goals and targets. To read the full publication please click here

 

Companies Take an Active Stance on Ending Violence Against Women

Companies recognize that taking an active stance to eliminate violence against women is not just the right thing to do, but good for business. As a company’s workforce is the driver of productivity, the costs and consequences for not addressing gender-based violence are too great to ignore. Learn more about the concrete steps companies are taking to address gender-based violence in their workplaces and communities.

 

WEPs Reporting Guidance

Principle 7: Transparency, Measuring and Reporting provides companies with added incentives to publicly report on progress towards their gender equality plan. The WEPs Reporting Guidance is a road map for how to acquire data and set benchmarks along the WEPs 7 Principle areas and also includes key references from the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) to encourage integrating this material into existing reporting activities. Learn more.

 

Post-2015 Agenda and Related Sustainable Development Goals Issue Focus: Women’s Empowerment and the Role of Business

With the development of the Post-2015 agenda and discussion of the scope of potential sustainable development goals, the United Nations Global Compact has been asked to bring private sector perspectives and action to the global development agenda. As one of the priority areas designated by the UN Global Compact’s LEAD companies, Women’s Empowerment and Gender Equality aims ensure that all sustainable development goals be inclusive and gender-sensitive to facilitate maximum impact and avoid increasing inequalities. This issue paper explores the responsible business community’s willingness to contribute to the creation of women’s empowerment goals as well as to inform government and policy makers in future implementation of efforts involving the private sector. In addition, gender is incorporated into all ten (10) Issue Briefs exploring a different priority issue area as identified through extensive consultations with LEAD companies and other stakeholders.

 

Making the Connections: Women, Corporate Sustainability and Sustainable Development

This paper explores the linkages between gender equality, corproate sustainabililty and sustainable development, and provides concrete examples of how companies are placing women's empowerment at the heart of coporate sustainability initiatives to ensure that they reach their intended mark. View the paper. To recommend a company example to add to this paper, email the WEPs team.

 

Women's Empowerment Principles, the UN Global Compact and the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights - Explanatory Note

This brief explanatory note explains the relationship between the Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs), the UN Global Compact and the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

 

Calls to Action

WEPs Calls to Action provide succinct guidance on advancing the seven principles by focusing in on particular challenges, opportunities and WEPs-related topics. They offer relevant facts and figures, good practices, the business case for action, and further resources that may be of assistance to companies seeking to implement the WEPs. 
 

Bring Down Legal Barriers for Women’s Economic Empowerment

Women face legal barriers to economic empowerment in virtually all countries inhibiting the potential of women – as employees and entrepreneurs – to participate effectively in the labour market and contribute fully to sustainable development. This Call to Action, supported by over twenty leading business organizations, civil society organizations and UN agencies, includes a spectrum of concrete actions that governments can take to help create an enabling environment for inclusive economic growth, such as enacting laws that promote a level playing field for men and women, establishing effective public institutions and supporting women’s entrepreneurship through public procurement. It also points to the need for all actors, including business, to implement strategies and policies that foster women’s economic empowerment and highlights the Women's Empowerment Principles and the Business for the Rule of Law Framework, an initiative of the UN Global Compact, as resources that can help Governments to engage businesses in achieving national priorities on governance and women's empowerment. The Call to Action compliments existing appeals for coordination and collaboration between stakeholders to advance gender equality and achieve sustainable development, such as the Partnering for Women’s Empowerment – Equality Means Business. Learn more here

 

Invest in Women's Rights to Health

Principle 3 of the Women’s Empowerment Principles encourages companies to ensure the health, including sexual and reproductive health, of all workers. Investing in women’s health not only benefits employees and surrounding communities, but it can also have a positive social and economic effect on the private sector. In ensuring that workers have safe working conditions and available health services, companies establish healthier staff, better relationships, and in many cases higher Return-on-investment (ROI). Discover strategies businesses can implement to respect and support women’s health, as well as find real life examples in our company annex.  Read entire Call to Action.

 

Support and Invest in Women's Entrepreneurship

Fostering women’s entrepreneurship is critical to achieving sustainable businesses, economic growth and to meet current and future sustainable development goals and targets. By leveraging the talents, skills and innovation of these women entrepreneurs, women can bring needed action to global challenges such as climate change and water scarcity. In support of the launch of Women’s Entrepreneurship Day (WED), 19 November 2014, the Women’s Empowerment Principles encourages companies to implement Principle 5 of the WEPS, which among other things calls on business to expand inclusive sourcing practices and support women entrepreneurship, and pledge their support to women- owned businesses and or for an individual women entrepreneur. Learn more here.

 

Tackle Unconscious Bias to Create Inclusive Business Environments

Companies and organizations are making tremendous strides in creating policies that support inclusive and diverse environments; however data shows that women, as well as other minority groups such as ethnic and/or racial minorities, persons with disabilities etc… continue to be underrepresented and face barriers to achieving their full potential.  While there are several factors that contribute to this global reality, one factor that is often overlooked is the need to address unconscious biases and implicit associations that can form an unintended and often an invisible barrier, restricting a company’s gender equality policies and programmes from reaching their intended mark. To achieve truly inclusive business environments the WEPs call on companies to take steps to uncover, raise awareness about, address and reduce unconscious biases throughout their organization, including at the management and leadership levels. Learn more here.

For additional free resources on unconscious bias please click here.

 

Invest in Women’s Employment

Empowering women to participate in full and productive employment is essential to expand economic growth, promote social development and enhance business performance. However, the positive impacts of women-focused employment practices on firms, communities and the economy are often under appreciated. To achieve sustainable development and unlock future growth, WINvest and the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) call on business to invest in better employment opportunities for women. Learn more here.

 

Commit to Inclusive Sourcing

Women's Empowerment Principle 5 encourages companies to expand their business relationship with women-owned enterprises. Supply chains offer a unique opportunity and means for companies to promote human rights and have a positive impact on economic development by offering economically disadvantage groups an equal opportunity to compete for business.  The Women's Empowerment Principles call for companies to make inclusive sourcing a key pillar in their business strategy. Learn more here.

 

Crack the Ceiling, Raise the Floor

The Women's Empowerment Principles call on companies to assure sufficient participation of women - 30 percent or greater - in decision-making and governance at all levels and across all business areas. Learn more. For a list of related organizations and registers, click here.

 
 
 

Events

 

Stock Exchanges Around the World Ring the Bell for Gender Equality!

Stock exchanges around the world joined UN Global Compact, UN Women and the Sustainable Stock Exchanges Initiative to ring the bell in support of gender equality and the WEPs. The series of global bell ringings began in Egypt on 2 March and the sound traveled to Nigeria, Poland, Sweden, Turkey and India, and culminated on 9 March with a bell ringing at NASDAQ in New York City, bringing together WEPs stakeholders in advance of the 2015 WEPs Annual Event.

View event summaryRead press release

 

Business In Society Programme on the WEPs

Business In Society (BIS) reports on how the private sector can have an influential effect on our lives through sustainable and responsible business. This programme features the WEPs and interviews with Ms. Anne-Marie Slaughter, President of The New America Foundation, Ms. Barbara Krumsiek, CEO of Calvert Investments, and Ursula Wynhoven, Chief, Governance and Social Sustainability and General Counsel of the United Nations Global Compact by John Paluszek of BIS. In these interviews, a spotlight is put on the WEPs and the tipping point for women’s empowerment in business, government, civil society and other institutions. Read press release.

 

Women's Empowerment Principles Official Side Event of CSW58

An official side event of the 58th Commission on the Status of Women, Women’s Empowerment Principles - Equality Means Business: Re-Visioning the Development Agenda - a Multi-Stakeholder Dialogue brought together a range of participants, including representatives from the private sector, to examine the role of businesses in gender equality, particularly addressing the barriers to jobs and decent employment. Co-sponsored by the Government of Australia, UN Global Compact, UN Women, International Federation of Business and Professional Women and the NGO CSW, this event aimed to highlight the importance of collaboration while presenting a variety of opportunities, stakeholder roles and responsibilities, lessons learned and how to get involved.

 

 

 

Webinars

 

Creating Opportunities for Economic Empowerment and Employment for Young Women

Business leaders identify the youth employment crisis as one of the most pressing global risks of our time, but also see investing in youth as one of the greatest potentials for business growth and development. There are more young people today than at any other time in history, approximately 1.8 billion, and half are women. These young people are breaking through stereotypes and creating innovative, concrete solutions to long-standing problems. Yet, although young people are creating these sustainable solutions, there is a disconnect with the formal labour force. Over the last year, youth unemployment rates have increased and the disparity in labour force participation between young women and men has widened. 

 

This webinar, co-hosted by the UN Global Compact, UN Women and Plan International, will highlight the opportunity and need for business to scale up action and invest in the future workforce to create economic opportunities for young women around the world, produce bottom line impacts on business growth and sustainability, and contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
 

 

Tackling Employer-Supported Childcare

Co-organized by the UN Global Compact and the IFC, this webinar explores the business case for employer-supported childcare as well as highlights existing company-led approaches. The discussion links to Principle 2 of the WEPs which calls on companies to support their employees’ access to childcare by providing services, resources, and information to both women and men. 

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Advancing SDG 5 through Inclusive Sourcing

Co-hosted by the UN Global Compact, the International Trade Centre and the Global Sourcing Council, this webinar explores the business case for inclusive sourcing and opportunities such as the Women Vendors Exhibition and Forum (WVEF), which facilitates the execution of business relationships between global supply chains and women entrepreneurs. The discussion links Principles 5 of the Women's Empowerment Principles to advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with particular regard to SDG 5, which aims to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. The webinar also addresses socially responsible sourcing practices that are good for business.

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Creating a Gender- Inclusive Value Chain: Moving from Data to Action

This webinar focuses on the need for research, data and action that promote women's entrepreneurship, create gender-inclusive supply chains, and advance Principle 5 of the Women's Empowerment Principles. The webinar highlights the 2015 Global Women Entrepreneur Leaders Scorecard, as well as a Call to Action led by the International Trade Center (ITC) to bring one million women entrepreneurs to markets by 2020. Presenters introduce actionable steps for governments and corporations to expand inclusive sourcing initiatives and company representatives will share innovative approaches and discuss challenges and lessons learned.

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Successful Maternity/Parental Leave Schemes and Return to Work

Focusing on Principle 2 and 3 of the Women’s Empowerment Principles - which encourage companies to offer flexible work options, leave and re-entry opportunities and to ensure the health including sexual and reproductive health of all workers - this webinar provides an overview of the topic, business case data, and good practice to employees and employers on successful maternity/parental leave schemes. It highlights the latest research on pregnancy and return to work, as well as the trends, challenges and lessons learned on how to create a fairer environment for pregnant women and mothers and fathers returning to work.

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Inclusive Sourcing: Good for Business and Good for Sustainable Development

Companies have a unique opportunity to advance economic development through their supply chains by promoting human rights and offering equal opportunity for men and women to develop business solutions that reflect the demographics of the communities in which the company serves.  Ensuring women have an equal opportunity to compete through inclusive sourcing policies and practices makes good business sense and is a key pillar of sustainable procurement.  This webinar hosted by the UN Global Compact and the  International Trade Centre explored the business case for inclusive sourcing and concrete opportunities such as the Women Vendors Exhibition and Forum that facilitate the execution of business relationships between global supply chains and women entrepreneurs.  The discussion was grounded in Principle 5 of the Women's Empowerment Principles (a joint initiative of UN Women and the UN Global Compact) which encourages companies to expand their business relationships with women-enterprises.

View Presentation | Download Recording

 

Investing in Women's Right to Health 

Principle 3 of the Women’s Empowerment Principles encourages companies to ensure the health, including sexual and reproductive health, of all workers. Investing in women’s health not only benefits employees and surrounding communities, but it can also have a positive social and economic effect on the private sector. In ensuring that workers have safe working conditions and available health services, companies establish healthier staff, better relationships, and in many cases higher Return-on-investment (ROI). This webinar highlights the benefits of investing in women's health, real life examples from Levi Strauss & Company and Merck, and strategies that businesses can implement to respect and support women’s health. For further information, please see the Call to Action on Investing in Women's Right to Health and the accompanying company annex.

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WEPs and Global Compact Signers Will Have the Benefit of Sharing their Progress on Gender Equality through the UN Global Compact’s Communication on Progress

The Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) has introduced four new gender-specific questions that UN Global Compact participants that have signed the CEO Statement of Support for the WEPs, will now answer when submitting their Communication on Progress (COP).  These questions went live on 1 October 2014, and will provide an opportunity for companies to transparently disclose their efforts around women’s empowerment and gender equality. This resource, recorded by the Women’s Empowerment Principles and the United Nations Global Compact Reporting Team, should serve as guidance for companies in implementing these new questions. For further support, kindly contact [email protected] or [email protected]

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Gender Equality - Human Rights and Business Dilemmas Forum

This webinar will explore the challenges responsible businesses can face when addressing gender-based discrimination and promoting gender equality in their operations and supply chains. In particular, the webinar will examine how companies can responsibly navigate this issue where local cultural, legal and/or business norms permit or promote discrimination. The webinar will also explore a range of relevant good practice – including the integration of the Women’s Empowerment Principles, a joint initiative of the Global Compact and UN Women, into business policies and practices – as well as examples of multi-national companies that have addressed this issue.

Video Recording

 

Respecting and Supporting Women throughout the Value Chain

Embedding corporate sustainability goals and objectives throughout the value chain remains a significant challenge for businesses around the world from all sectors. This webinar will focus on the gender dimension of responsible value chain management and highlight the specific challenges and opportunities faced by companies. Principle 5 of the Women's Empowerment Principles -- which encourages companies to implement enterprise development, supply chain and marketing practices that empower women -- will provide a starting point for discussion. Company experiences, new programmes and engagement opportunities aimed at assisting companies to better apply a gender lens to their responsible value chain strategies will be presented.

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How to Tackle the Unconscious Mind for Inclusive Behavior

Many business leaders worldwide support inclusion and diversity, and a number of organizations are raising unconscious bias awareness in an effort to foster an inclusive culture. Tackling bias through training sessions on unconscious bias are an important step but far from enough. This webinar will look at practical interventions called 'Inclusion Nudges' that passively and actively ‘push’ the unconscious mind to help the brain make better decisions and promote more inclusive behaviour - that will stick. The purpose of Inclusion Nudges is to motivate, steer, empower and outsmart the brain towards more objective evaluations and decision in the employee life cycle that will promote gender equality and inclusion of diversity. Ms. Tinna C. Nielsen, Global Head of Diversity, Inclusion & Collaboration at Arla Foods and Ms. Lisa Kepinski, Founder & CEO of Inclusion-Institute will share their concept and how Inclusion Nudges work and have been proven to work in various organizations globally.

 

The Business Case for Women's Employment

Empowering women to participate in full and productive employment is essential to expand economic growth, promote social and sustainable development and enhance business performance. However, the positive impacts of women-focused employment practices on firms, communities and the economy are often under appreciated. Co-hosted by the UN Global Compact, the International Finance Corporation, and the International Labour Organization, this webinar presents the latest research on the business case for gender diversity in the workplace. The discussions highlight the key challenges and opportunities for advancing women’s employment and retention and present key engagement opportunities to further promote gender equality including the Women's Empowerment Principles and WINvest.

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Inclusive Sourcing: A Key Pillar of Sustainable Procurement

Co-convened by the UN Global Compact, the International Trade Centre, WEConnect International and BPW International, this webinar explores the "why" and "how" of sourcing from women-owned businesses. Principle 5 of the Women's Empowerment Principles, which encourages companies to expand their business relationships with women-owned businesses provides the foundation to explore why inclusive sourcing makes good business sense and is a key pillar of sustainable procurement.

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Additional Information

 

Business and Women's Health

This webinar introduces examples of innovative approaches to empowering women in the workplace, marketplace and community by focusing on women's health initiatives in the private sector. These inspirational examples illustrate some of the concrete ways in which companies can and are taking action to implement the Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs).

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Diversity and Gender Equity as an Investment Opportunity: Progress and Impact of the Women's Empowerment Principles

Companies and investors alike have been paying increasing attention to the business case for having robust diversity and gender equality policies and practices. This webinar brings together Global Compact participants and signatories of Principles for Responsible Investment to take stock of the growth and impact of the Women's Empowerment Principles initiative to date. To highlight the investment opportunity of gender equity, Catalyst, a leading nonporfit organization working to expand opportunities for women and business, presents cutting-edge research that supports the business case and Pax World Investments and Calvert Investments, investment management companies, discuss how the investor community can help advance gender equality and women's empowerment by encouraging companies to embrace the WEPs.

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Women Workers: Health, Wealth, and the Future of Corporate Well-being

Co-hosted by the UN Global Compact, UN Women, GBCHealth and the RAISE Health Initiative, this webinar will explore leading practices in meeting the health needs of women workers in the workplace of supplier factories and corporate subsidiaries. It will feature a panel discussion describing activities that can enable companies to achieve gender-specific development goals and to respect and support human rights. These include the Family Planning 2020 Goals, the Millennium Development Goals, Women’s Empowerment Principles and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

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