April 11, 2022 | less than a minute read

The Gender Lens in Supply Chains

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Justin Bettey

Director EMEA - Supplier Management

Get in touch

Justin Bettey

Director EMEA - Supplier Management

I've been working in the social/labour rights sector for over twenty years and ashamed to say that as a man I very likely never saw gender discrimination in the way I should have, I certainly have not experienced it. I have two teenage daughters who now work and it has given me such an education in seeing gender through a difference lens and the discrimination they see. The ETI is right that as an industry we need to better collate/analyse data by gender. I am pleased to see that not only Intertek but many other stakeholders and initiatives are now doing this, which in some cases is really helping to better understand risk and the very real challenges/discrimination that women experience in supply chains every day.

intertek.com/assurance/wca

intertek.com/assurance/edge

ethicaltrade.org/blog/gender-equity-supply-chains-future-proofing

The reality, however, is that most supply chain data is largely gender blind, meaning it views workers as a homogenous group. This lack of gender-disaggregation limits our understanding of certain risks, disparities, and inequities that may be gender sensitive.