Tackling Sexism in the City

Earlier this year, the regulator issued a survey to ask about instances of non-financial misconduct at insurance firms and requested information about how this is being dealt with.

In the latest Post podcast, David Cross, head of external communication at the FCA, said the watchdog wants to know about the size of the issue, plus approaches being taken to tackle it.

He said: “That is not to say the statistics will tell the whole story. We know that is not the case.

“You can see the situation where a firm that has a culture where people can speak up and have the faith that when they do that their concerns will be properly investigated could have higher instances of people coming forward.

“The statistics won’t tell the whole picture, but it will give us a baseline.”

Tracey Groves, head of sustainable business and ESG advisory practice at DWF, said the FCA’s approach to examining non-financial misconduct could create challenges for parts of the insurance industry where records weren’t properly kept about employee complaints.

But she said insurers should see the survey as an opportunity to pivot to a more inclusive culture, reflect on responsibility for behaviour and think long and hard about the individuals who lead organisations.

Jo Wright, people and culture director at Specialist Risk Group, said she still sees examples of sexism in the insurance industry, and that assumptions are still being made, such as that young female leaders lack authority and males in the room are the leaders.

Wright said: “This work is very important to understand more about what is under the surface, those not-so-apparent incidences [of sexism].”

Vivine Cameron, equality, diversity and inclusion manager at the Chartered Insurance Institute, said the sector needs to recognise that if Amanda Blanc, CEO of Aviva Group, can encounter sexism at an AGM, then treating people with dignity is still a problem that needs to be addressed.

She said: “Let’s make sure we make the relevant changes for the future.”

Cross, Groves, Wright and Cameron also examine how the complexity of modern communication methods, from emails and instant messaging to social media, can amplify the difficulty of effectively monitoring for inappropriate behaviour.

The group also outlines steps the industry can take to make sure podcasts and regulatory action to address sexism in the City will no longer be required.

As well as being able to listen to the podcast by clicking on the player above, you can also download and keep it to listen to anytime, anywhere you want to.

To download the episode, go to your podcast provider of choice (Apple, Google, Samsung, Spotify, Audible) and search for Insurance Post.