Incentives for ANZ women

AUSTRALIA and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) says it will pay primary caregivers a childcare allowance of A$4,000 designed to improve gender diversity at senior levels.
The allowance is designed for caregivers in Australia and New Zealand only as there is no similar incentive for ANZ PNG.
A senior ANZ officer in Port Moresby told The National the bank was looking at similar incentives when asked whether such an incentives exists for PNG childcare givers.
He did not make any further comments.
The incentive measures would also include superannuation on all forms of paid parental leave, Melbourne-based ANZ said.
ANZ chief executive Mike Smith said the 2010 EOWA women in leadership census, launched yesterday, showed little progress to improve the representation of women in senior executive roles and on boards among Australian companies.
EOWA refers to equal opportunities for women in the workplace agency.
“Clearly there’s a need for a new way forward,” Smith said.
“One issue is to address the reality of what happens to women in business when they take time off to have children … we need to stop penalising mothers.”
The bank was hoping its approach would encourage women back to work after the birth of a child and increase the representation of women in senior management positions.