Securities regulators publish 10th annual report on women's representation in leadership positions

Women now hold 29 percent of board seats, an increase from 27 percent last year
Securities regulators publish 10th annual report on women's representation in leadership positions

Canadian securities regulators have released their 10th annual report reviewing disclosures about the representation of women on boards and in executive officer positions.

The comprehensive report, published by authorities in Alberta, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, the Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Nunavut, Ontario, Quebec, and Saskatchewan, assessed corporate governance disclosures from 574 non-venture issuers.

Key findings from this year's review highlight steady progress in gender representation, with notable trends over the decade-long assessment period. Women now hold 29 percent of board seats, an increase from 27 percent last year and significantly higher than the 11 percent recorded in the first year. A total of 90 percent of issuers reported having at least one woman on their board, compared to 89 percent last year and 49 percent at the start of the review period.

In terms of executive officer positions, 72 percent of issuers had at least one woman in such roles, marking a slight rise from 71 percent last year and up from 60 percent in year one. The report noted, however, that the proportion of board vacancies filled by women decreased from 43 percent last year to 37 percent this year.

Stan Magidson, chair of the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) and chair and CEO of the Alberta Securities Commission, commented on the broader trajectory observed over the past decade. “We have seen an increase in representation of women on boards and in executive positions over the last 10 years,” Magidson stated. “Investors have advised that they value disclosure about an organization’s diversity, and we continue to work toward a harmonized national diversity disclosure framework that goes beyond the representation of women.”

The report noted that this will likely be the final year for the current review format. After 10 years of annual disclosures under existing standards, the CSA is considering changes to diversity disclosure requirements. In April 2023, the CSA issued a Notice and Request for Comment, inviting public feedback on proposed amendments to Form 58-101F1 Corporate Governance Disclosure and changes to National Policy 58-201 Corporate Governance Guidelines. The CSA aims to develop a more cohesive national disclosure framework, taking into account comments received during the consultation period.

In addition to the report, data for an additional 113 non-venture issuers, which were not part of the prior year's sample, were also published. The full report, CSA Multilateral Staff Notice 58-317 Review of Disclosure Regarding Women on Boards and in Executive Officer Positions—Year 10, and underlying data are available on CSA member websites. The underlying data files have been published by Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Québec and Saskatchewan.