Good morning. Although women are playing an increasingly larger role in the global workforce, a new survey by Deloitte—of some 5,000 women across 10 countries —finds that at least half of them reported higher stress levels than a year ago, and more took time off due to mental health reasons.
The women surveyed are in roles ranging from non-managerial to C-suite and board positions. Mental health (48%) trailed only financial security (51%) and women’s rights (50%) among their overall concerns, and results appear strongly linked to hours worked. Among those working just their contracted hours, about half described their mental health as good—a figure that plummeted to 23% for those who regularly worked extra. And just 37% of women said they felt able to switch off from work.
With fewer women also reporting that they felt supported by employers when it came to work-life balance issues, more were likely to switch jobs, according to the report, which also noted that 43% said they expected to stay with their current employer for just one to two years. Only 29% said they expected to stay at their job for three to five years, and just 9% said they’d remain for more than five years.
But a small subset of companies is making strides, according to Deloitte, which defines “Gender Equality Leaders” as employers that have built inclusive cultures that value work-life balance, and where women and their careers are supported. About 62% of women at such firms said they intended to stay with their employer for more than three years, compared with just 13% of those at firms defined as “Gender Equality Lagging.” And in terms of progressing into a senior leadership role, figures at those types of firms, respectively, came in at 92% versus 31%.
Regarding senior leadership positions, in an April Fortune opinion piece, Tacy M. Byham, CEO of DDI, a global leadership consulting firm, argues that gender equality at work still has a ways to go:
“While many business leaders are celebrating the fact that women CEOs now run more than 10% of the Fortune 500 and JetBlue made headlines this year for appointing Joanna Geraghty as the first female CEO of a major U.S. airline, I’m sitting here with many other women leaders asking, ‘That’s it?!’ Certainly, any progress is good, but at this rate of change, we won’t see an equal number of men and women in CEO seats until the next century.”
Many women early in their careers, Byham notes, are excluded from talent pools that receive more attention and guidance on climbing the latter. They “don’t get the skills development, leadership investment, and mentorship they need to advance—and that their male counterparts take for granted; and this mentorship gap only widens as women progress in their careers.”
Deloitte notes that just one in 10 women surveyed said their employer was taking concrete steps to fulfill its commitment to gender equality. According to the report: Women who work for Gender Equality Leaders, companies that demonstrate this focus, “feel safer, are more comfortable disclosing challenges with their health and well-being, and are significantly more likely to stay with their employer for longer.”
Sheryl Estrada
sheryl.estrada@fortune.com
María Soledad Davila Calero curated the Leaderboard and Overheard sections of today’s newsletter.
Leaderboard
Daniella Turenshine was named CFO at the beach and surf lifestyle brand REEF, a portfolio company within Charlesbank Capital Partners. Turenshine most recently served as the CFO at FIGS since December 2021 and, prior to that, she served as FIGS’ SVP of finance and strategy. Earlier in her career, Turenshine served as VP of Garnett Station Partners.
Joel Day was appointed EVP and CFO at EyeCarePartner, a provider of clinically integrated eye care, effective June 1. Day comes from Kindred Healthcare, where he originally served as controller and CFO for the operational and skilled nursing divisions before becoming CFO of the broader operation.
Big Deal
Overall job numbers for April were lower than expected with the U.S. adding 175,000, the smallest monthly increase in six months, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report released on May 3. In April, unemployment rose to 3.9%, up from 3.8% in March, but remained below 4% for the 27th consecutive month. Wages grew 0.2% in April from the prior month, slightly below the 0.3% that was forecasted.
“When wages and employment levels trend down it puts less pressure on prices, which is why even the slight declines in this job report caught economists’ eye,” Fortune’s Paolo Confino writes. His report offers insights from analysts on the implications of the latest jobs report.
Going deeper
“Five Myths About Generative AI That Leaders Should Know,” an article in Wharton's business journal, debunked five misconceptions about generative AI that could stand in the way of implementation, according to experts from Wharton and the “Magnificent Seven” tech companies. The experts write that myth no. 1 is generative AI tools are available for free or minimal cost.
Overheard
“The reason why some of the industry is having a challenge is because I think there isn't technology in place today to do exactly what they’re looking for. But hopefully, we can all get there.”
— Frontier Airlines CEO Barry Biffle said on a call with analysts referencing the Biden Administration’s new rules that make refund policies more friendly to customers and more uniform across airlines.
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