Deloitte’s Women @ Work Report Reveals Signs of Progress, but Much Work Remains to Improve Women’s Experiences in the Workplace

By PR Newswire On Apr 26, 2023

Deloitte’s Women @ Work: A Global Outlook, a survey of 5,000 women across 10 countries, finds some signs of progress for women in the workplace during the survey period, rates of burnout dropped, non-inclusive behaviors declined, and hybrid work experiences improved. But these issues are still a challenge for many, and other factors have worsened since last year. There has been a significant decline in the number of respondents who feel comfortable talking about mental health in the workplace. Fewer women feel they get adequate mental health support from their employer. More women feel unable to switch off from work, even as they bear the greatest responsibility for household tasks. And a lack of flexibility at work is driving career decisions—more women worldwide have left their jobs in the past 12 months than in 2021 and 2020 combined, and lack of flexibility is among the top reasons cited.

New to the report this year, the research also explores how women’s health issues impact their working lives. One in five women report experiencing health challenges related to menstruation or menopause. Many say they work through the pain and discomfort, at least in part due to a persistent stigma around these topics.

“While our research shows some glimpses of improvement for women in the workplace over the past year, it also illuminates the work that remains,” says Emma Codd, Deloitte Global Inclusion Leader. “We’re seeing a worsening picture when it comes to critical workplace aspects, such as mental health support. And the vast majority of respondents do not believe that their employer is taking concrete steps to deliver on its commitments to gender equality. Employers need to go beyond setting goals and policies and consistently foster a more inclusive and respectful work environment where all women are able to succeed.”

Flexibility underpins career choices while hybrid experiences improve— for some

This year’s report reinforced flexibility as a critical expectation for women and a top factor in their career decisions. Yet less than a quarter of women surveyed say they have a high degree of flexibility over where and when they work, and lack of flexibility around working hours is one of the top three reasons cited by women who left an employer in the past year.

There is a correlation between flexibility and employer loyalty, with two-thirds of women in highly flexible work arrangements saying they plan to stay with their company for more than three years, compared to only 19% of women who have no flexibility. But many women don’t feel comfortable taking advantage of flexible work options—97% believe requesting or taking advantage of flexible working would affect their likelihood of promotion, and 95% believe it is unlikely their workload would be adjusted accordingly if they moved to a flexible working arrangement.

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