The S&P 500’s Top 10 Companies for Women

Ann Logue

December 10, 2020 at 4:48 PM·4 min read

General Motors Chairman and CEO Mary Barra talks with media prior to the start of the 2017 General Motors Company Annual Meeting of Stockholders Tuesday, June 6, 2017 at GM Global Headquarters in Detroit, Michigan.

Equileap, a consulting firm that looks at gender in the workplace, has released its 2020 report on Gender Equality in the US. It looks specifically at practices among companies in the S&P 500 stock index. Considering that the average company has a workforce that is 40% female, the continued gap in pay and representation is disheartening.

Despite decades of work and well-publicized corporate initiatives, only one company – General Motors (NYSE: GM) – has no gender pay gap between workers in equivalent positions. GM was also one of only 44 companies to publish its gender pay gap information and one of only 31 with a female CEO. This compares to 40 companies that have a CEO named either James or Michael.

See: 8 Reasons Women Should Get a Financial Advisor Right Now
Find: States With the Biggest (and Smallest) Gender Pay Gap

Even stranger, there are more board chairs named John (23) than there are women with any name serving in the role (21). Yesterday, Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) announced that Mellody Hobbson would be the company’s new Chair of the Board, bringing the number of women to 22 and people named Mellody to one.

Among the 25 companies that perform best for gender equity, the largest number, seven, are financial services companies, followed by health care companies at six. Some of the top-performing companies have ongoing gender issues. PNC (NYSE: PNC) is ranked ninth overall, but in February it was ordered to pay $2.4 million in damages for sexual harassment of an employee by a customer. Another financial services company, BlackRock (NYSE: BLK) improved its score by 60% between 2019 and 2020 to land at number 21. This was primarily due to an increase in transparency about the number of women in its workforce and its policies on parental leave, flexible work arrangement, and sexual harassment.

Here’s a look at the ten companies that headed the list – and if you’re looking for more, find out about the 50 best companies for working moms.

10. Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY)

Industry: Health Care
Market Cap: $153.23 Billion

Six of the 15 members of Eli Lilly’s executive leadership team are female.

Learn More: Best and Worst States for Healthcare Costs

9. PNC (NYSE: PNC)

Industry: Financials
Market Cap: $60.56 Billion

PNC is on pace to become larger with the acquisition of BBVA USA (NYSE: BBVA), expected to close in mid-2021.

PNC Bank Review: Options for Saving, Investing and More

Bangkok, Thailand - July 30, 2018: Citibank sign installed indoor.

8. Citigroup (NYSE: C)

Industry: Financials
Market Cap: $125.56 Billion

The CEO is named Michael, but half of the members of the board of directors are women.

Learn More: How Much Is Citibank Worth?

7. Bank of America (NYSE: BAC)

Industry: Financials
Market Cap: $250.01 Billion

Bank of America is second to JPMorgan (also on the list) in terms of size but practically tied on gender equality.

Find Out: How To Avoid Bank of America’s Monthly Maintenance Fees

JP Morgan Chase Bank in Manhattan New York

6. JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM)

Industry: Financials
Market Cap: $366.03 Billion

The financial giant is at the top of the list of financial companies in the Equileap report.

Insights: JPMorgan Says S&P 500 Will See a 10% Rally Next Year

5. Verizon Communications: (NYSE: VZ)

Industry: Communications Services
Market Cap: $250.93 Billion

Verizon’s ranking improved in 2020 because of greater representation of women on the executive team and in increase in the number of weeks of paid maternity leave.

4. Accenture (NYSE: ACN)

Industry: Information Technology
Market Cap: $162..57 Billion

Accenture is one of only four companies to have both a female CEO and female CFO.

Retire Right: Accenture and 23 More Companies With Surprisingly Great 401(k) Plans

Cincinnati - Circa February 2020: Kellogg's Snack Division.

3. Kellogg's (NYSE: K)

Industry: Consumer Staples
Market Cap: $61.35 Billion

This food company makes cereal, and it makes its gender policies transparent to employees.

Women Today: A Look at How Women Stack Up in America’s Economy

Markham, Ontario, Canada - September 20, 2019: Nielsen Canada in Markham, Ontario, Canada.

2. Nielsen Holdings (NYSE: NLSN)

Industry: Industrials
Market Cap: $6.79 Billion

Nielsen is known for its media and other data services, and it is committed to paying all employees a living wage.

Nielsen News: Targeted Ads Could Be Coming Soon to Your TV

DETRIOT, MI - JUNE 9: General Motors CEO Mary Barra holds a media briefing prior to the start of the 2015 GM Annual Meeting of Stockholders at GM world headquarters June 9, 2015 in Detroit, Michigan.

1. General Motors (NYSE: GM)

Industry: Consumer Discretionary
Market Cap: $63.59 Billion

The famous car company is led by a woman, Chairman & CEO Mary Barra.

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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: The S&P 500’s Top 10 Companies for Women

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