Every year, on International Women’s Day, a theme is selected to help campaign against gender inequality. This year, the aim is to encourage people to actively call out gender bias, discrimination and stereotyping each time they see it. The goal is to “#BreakTheBias”.
In various industries, interest inclines towards a specific gender which is caused by the societal stereotypes and assumed gender roles. According to Office for National Statistics, more women choose to work in the education, healthcare and food industries where more men have jobs in manufacturing, transportation and IT.
But how can we break these stereotypes?
As a society, we need to make jobs accessible for every individual regardless of their gender, age, nationality, and background. According to International Labour Organization, while 75.2% of men are labour force participants around the world, only 47.8% of women are working individuals. This ratio is 67.1% for men and 58% for women in the UK. However, unfortunately accessibility is not solely enough. We not only need to give women and other minorities more opportunities, but we also need to make sure they are treated equally in the working environment. Since the Equal Pay Act of 1970, there has been great improvements in the mean gender pay gap, decreasing from almost 40% to 15% in 2019. In 2021, the pay gap continued its downwards trend among full time employees and a 7.9% gender pay gap was recorded. This downwards trend is a result of the awareness raised from days such as International Women’s Day which is why Sycous continue to support widespread campaigns and industry-based groups such as the District Heat Divas, ensuring we support and empower women within the industry and those hoping to join.
At Sycous 37% of our employees, and 47% of our management team are women. We value and respect their knowledge, experiences and create opportunities for them to grow, be who they are and become who they want to be. Recently, Sycous hosted an industry webinar ‘Managing the Impact of Energy Prices on Heat Network Tariffs’ with an all-female management speaker line up. The session looked to explain the best ways to manage potentially significant concerns consumers may have about the current energy crisis and how this may affect heat network tariffs. Sycous proudly included 3 of our female managers as speakers, learning from their knowledge and expertise on the heat network industry.
Equalities and Diversity - We incorporate equality and diversity throughout our workforce, with external training supported by a Code of Conduct and transparent recruitment processes. We believe that having a team that reflects the diversity of the communities in which we operate offers unique benefits, such as being able to offer female operatives. We strongly believe in fairness and accessibility. We pay the real London Living Wage, and our consumer web portal is compliant Web Content Accessibility Guidelines and in several languages.
Assessing our Employees - All our employees are recruited through our fair and transparent recruitment processes. All potential team members undergo a multi-stage interview process, including a practical demonstration of the skills, such as in our operative training centre. Additionally, prior to an appointment, all candidates are externally verified by Experian to cover their right to work, references, financial and DBS checks.
"I am proud to be a woman in a typically male dominated industry but also within my specific role in Operational Delivery at Director level. I feel passionate about leading the way for next generation of strong, talented women in all aspects of their careers within whatever industry they choose to excel in.
Sadly, I have faced inequality and the negative perception of women in business at various levels during my career. Becoming a mother provided more challenges on how others perceived motherhood would affect my professional progression and success. I am a mother to a strong young girl and encourage her to empower female equality, that being a woman does not define our ability to succeed.
Sycous is an open minded and diverse organisation that looks at skillset, professional experience and building a successful team. Sycous support my role as a female professional and welcomes diversity within the business." Emma Paton, Director of Operations
“We are seeing more women than ever joining STEM, engineering, and our Heat Network Industry. It is great to see the progression we have made and it’s important we continue to empower women and support them to positions of management. Like Sycous, who continue to employ individuals based on their skills, experience, and qualification; regardless of gender.” Odessa Ahmed, Business Development Manager
“Working in an industry which is typically male dominated can be a challenging experience. It’s vitally important that we work together to bring more women into STEM and into management in order to break the bias. Part of this process requires us to reframe the way we hire and provide opportunity, and how we support our colleagues internally to make sure that equal opportunities for progression and advancement are provided regardless of gender. In previous roles within the energy industry, I have felt at a significant disadvantage because of my gender, and working for Sycous has certainly been a refreshing change of pace.” Hannah Abbas-Lodge, Support Manager
“From the moment I applied for my position at Sycous I felt respected and that they cared about me as a person and a member of staff. They interviewed and hired me, knowing I was going to have surgery the day after my interview, with a long healing time, and didn't bat an eyelid. Since then, I have been supported, praised, and cared for the same as everyone else, and have also been promoted (which is something I've had to move jobs to achieve in the past) and truly feel valued and equal to everyone, even the directors.
The surgery I had the day after I was offered the job was for Endometriosis, which can cause a number of problems for those who suffer with it and occasionally I do have days I need to deal with it. Sycous have been very supportive while still respecting my privacy, and I feel confident that I can cope better with it without the extra stress I’ve experienced before.” Carly Street, Lead Test Analyst
For more information on Endometriosis: NHS, Endometriosis UK
For more information on International Women's Day 2022: #BreakTheBias
