At the launch of the Healthy Women, Healthy Economies Report by Merck and SCHSAsia on March 11, over 80 attendees from 16 industries joined online and celebrated this milestone together.
Hong Chow, Head of China & International, Healthcare at Merck, opened the virtual event and boldly stated, “according to the World Economic Forum, it will take 268 years to close the economic gap between men and women. We believe China can do it faster.” Diane Zhu, Country HR Head at Merck China, then shared key insights from the report, which found the three key factors impacting working women in China are discrimination and bias at work, imbalanced responsibilities at home, and mental health struggles. To address these obstacles, the report stated the need to make DEI accountable, offer flexible work arrangements (FWAs) to boost work-life balance, and cultivate a healthy pipeline of female talent.
On the first panel, Rogier Janssens, Managing Director and General Manager at Merck Healthcare China, highlighted the importance of Merck’s Women in Leadership community, which has helped to increase women in leadership at Merck from 32% to 38% between 2018 and 2020, and the Fertility Helpdesk, which supports the fertility and assisted reproduction treatment needs of female employees. Roberta Lipson, Founder and CEO of United Family Healthcare and New Frontier Health, proposed three tips for companies supporting working mothers: provide onsite medical care to keep mothers from missing too much work, allow women to bring their baby to the office, and provide adequate breast pumping and storage arrangements. Lipson, a working mom herself, told the audience even she has sat at the negotiation table nursing a newborn and leading from example is a powerful way to foster an inclusive environment from the top down. Gloria Xu, China Country Manager and Vice President of External Affairs at Albemarle mentioned we should not become complacent despite leading efforts by MNCs to date and noted the need to continually improve and remain transparent to really move the needle.
On the second panel, speakers stated the importance of empowering women and male allies. Kathy Gong, Co-founder and CEO of WafaGames, feels women have a disadvantage as entrepreneurs, especially in gaming. Women face many obstacles so we need to work harder and make more sacrifices. Gong noted resiliency and persistency are key and encouraged participants to live boldly since life is short. Selena Chu, Vice President of Dow Greater China, emphasized gender diversity benefits the economy, but can more importantly help solve global issues. Chu also mentioned the importance of having employee resource groups (ERGs), like the Dow Women Interest Network (WIN) to support women and create a space to share and learn from each other. For male allies, Marc Jaffre, Managing Director of Merck Life Science, mentioned the importance of mentorship and to see things through a woman’s lens because they have different experiences and challenges than men. While Jaffre is an avid male ally, he acknowledges that he is not perfect and urges others to admit when they make mistakes and grow from them.
In closing, Allan Gabor, President of Merck China and Managing Director of Merck Electronics China, restated Merck’s commitment to gender equity and expressed his gratitude to all who contributed to the HWHE global initiative.
