UniCredit today announced that it has signed the UK’s HM Treasury Women in Finance Charter to pledge its full support to helping improve gender diversity in the financial services sector in the UK and worldwide. Committing to this initiative is part of UniCredit’s Group-wide Diversity Action Plan that follows a number of decisive actions already taken by the Bank to reach a more balanced gender distribution at all levels. As part of joining the Charter and like all the other signatories, UniCredit is defining specific internal gender balance targets, which will be announced in September 2018.

Jean Pierre Mustier, CEO of UniCredit, commented: “Diversity and gender balance are key priorities for UniCredit and we take great pride in our already diverse workforce. We are actively working to ensure our work environment is built on respect and continuous learning in line with our One Bank, One UniCredit culture and aspire to become one of the best employers in the European financial sector. To achieve our objective, we recognise that a continuous investment in further improving diversity and gender balance is necessary.”

UniCredit launched a Group-wide Diversity Action Plan in 2017. It focuses on developing and supporting diversity at all levels through specific initiatives related to: recruitment and talent; professional development; remuneration; work-life balance; information and education. UniCredit has been dedicated to achieving greater diversity in its workforce and an improved gender balance since 2008 when the Bank signed the Joint Declaration on Equal Opportunities and Non Discrimination. In 2011, UniCredit launched its Gender Balance Programme and in 2013 the Bank enforced a Global Equality Policy and monitoring process including a Gender Balance Dashboard.

The Bank joined the 30% Club^[1] in 2015 and also signed the Women’s Empowerment Principles to renew its commitment to reach a more balanced gender distribution at all levels of the Group and promote female talent. In November 2017, UniCredit signed a new joint declaration with the European Works Council with regards to Work-Life Balance, reiterating the importance of respect for our staff.

In terms of keeping track of progress, UniCredit currently monitors female representation in the Bank’s workforce in the context of organisational hierarchy twice a year at the Group level through the Gender Balance Dashboard. Furthermore, details on the structure of UniCredit’s workforce are published annually in the Group Integrated Report.

 

About the Women in Finance Charter

The Charter is a commitment by the UK’s HM Treasury and signatory firms to work together to build a more balanced and fair industry. Firms that sign up to this Charter are pledging to be the best businesses in the sector. The Charter commits firms to supporting the progression of women into senior roles in the financial services sector, recognises the diversity of the sector and that firms have different starting points regarding gender balance, and requires firms to publicly report on progress to deliver against their internal targets to support the transparency and accountability needed to drive change.

 

About UniCredit

UniCredit is a simple successful pan-European Commercial Bank, with a fully plugged in CIB, delivering a unique Western, Central and Eastern European network to its extensive client franchise: 26 million clients.
UniCredit  offers both local and international expertise to its clients, providing them with unparalleled access to leading banks in its 14 core markets through its European banking network: Italy, Germany, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Turkey. Leveraging on an international network of representative offices and branches, UniCredit serves clients in another 18 countries worldwide.

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[1] The 30% Club is  a UK based initiative launched in 2010 with the goal of achieving a minimum of 30% women on FTSE 100 boards.

 

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