Avana loves to celebrate International Women’s Day each year. With March 8th quickly approaching, discussion around this year’s theme, “Embrace Equity,” needs to begin and continue throughout the rest of the year.
Embrace Equity. Simply put, it means treating everyone with fairness and equality, no matter what their gender, race, or differences are. Ensuring everyone is treated equally and has the same chance to succeed in our society.
Even though progress is happening, there is still more work to do. Women still don’t have the same chances as men in their jobs, politics, and business. Through consistency in policy action, advocacy and ally-ship, we take one step at a time to make the world a better place for everyone.
Think of the gender wage gap...
Women and men are still not paid equally for the same job. In fact, most women make ten cents less than men for doing the same work. We need to address and solve these issues before equity can be reached.
As businesses and leaders, there are many things we can do to support the equity agenda. To help women have successful careers and take care of their families, we can offer flexible work schedules and paid time off when they have a baby. Some countries already have these things, but we can do more to support women working and having families. By providing this kind of help, we can make it easier for women to do well in their jobs and care for their families at the same time.
Support women-led and owned business.
We can also support businesses owned by women. These businesses need help because of the unique challenges and obstacles women face. We want to make sure they have the same chances as other businesses. Locally, RaiseHER is running a mentorship program for young women in partnership with WESK. They provide first-hand experience of what it is like to take on leadership roles in different companies and show that women belong in leadership positions.
Fair representation in politics
To ensure women are treated fairly in politics, supporting women in leadership is important. Support happens by helping women run for office, fighting for equal representation of men and women, and encouraging more women to get involved in politics. By doing this, we can ensure that women are represented fairly in leadership positions.
Promote fairness and equality
At Avana, one of our core values is being Unapologetically Feminist. This means we are tireless in our dedication to fighting gender inequality in all forms. Promoting fairness means understanding that equality between men and women is a human rights issue, not just something that affects women.