, Columnist
Equal Pay for Women, Now!
BHP's equality goal is admirable, but it's only half the story.
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When the world’s largest mining company says it wants to hire more women, surely that's a good thing right? Like all things, it depends.
BHP Billiton said this week that it wants an equal number of men and women working for it by 2025. This would mean an extra 21,000 female staff and contractors. It's an honorable goal given that most diversity efforts concentrate on management. For example, 60 British financial firms have committed to a 30 percent target for women in senior positions in five years, while 13 have promised complete balance at the top.