The UK’s new Minister for Aviation, Baroness Vere, has welcomed the progress made by UK aviation and aerospace companies on gender diversity.
In her inaugural speech, Baroness Vere said: “I am delighted to be joining the department at such an exciting time. Aviation and aerospace are great industries to work in and the support of these 100 companies is an important step towards greater gender diversity. I hope that more companies will sign the charter and I will be challenging the sector as a whole to do more. If any business is to have the highest quality workforce, diversity must play an important part. And I am delighted that so many companies have recognised this and are doing something about it. I look forward to working with them.”
The UK Women in Aviation and Aerospace Charter, first launched in July 2018, commits its signatories to boost female representation among their workforces and build a fairer working atmosphere for women, by setting internal targets and implementing policies including regular reporting on their progress, implementing a senior executive role with specific responsibility for promoting gender diversity and inclusion; and linking senior executive pay to the success of gender diversity targets. The charter has now been signed by more than 100 companies, including Virgin Atlantic, Airbus and Boeing.
Airbus Senior Vice President Katherine Bennett CBE, Co-Chair of the UK Women in Aviation and Aerospace Charter, said: “The Women in Aviation and Aerospace Charter has made great progress since it was launched last July. Seeing so much commitment from the aviation and aerospace industries to work towards gender equality is promising for our future. Today as we celebrate the charter’s 100th signatory, we have taken a huge step towards making greater gender diversity in our industries a reality. I hope this is just the start of many great things in our journey towards gender equality in aviation and aerospace.”
