The Role of Women in the Italian Network of Boards of Directors, 2003-2010

by Carlo Drago, Francesco Millo, Roberto Ricciuti, Paolo Satella - July 2011 Working Paper Series, Department of Economics, University of Verona — 

The Role of Women in the Italian Network of Boards of Directors, 2003-2010

Introduction

It is well-known that in Italy women play a minor role in the labour market. According to  the  Italian  Institute  of  Statistics,  the  participation  rate  is  46.1%  with  respect  to  67.7%  of men, and although female students tend to outperform their male counterpart, they earn lower wages  (-4.9%,  according  to  the  European  Union,  -7.2%  according  to  Cnel,  the  National Council  for  Economy  and  Labour)  and  do  not  reach  the  same  positions.  When  we  look  at corporate  governance  we  find  a  dismal  picture:  only  7.2%  of  total  board  seats  is  held  by  a woman  in  2011,  although  this  share  is  slowly  increasing  from  4.1%  in  2001.