German Firms to Increase Female Leadership

Thirty major corporations in Germany set goals on Monday to increase the number of females in leadership positions so as to avoid legally imposed quotas. Despite the fact that Germany's political leader is a woman, only 3.7 percent of managers in the country's top corporate firms are female. Chancellor Angela Merkel's cabinet is at odds over whether quotas are necessary to raise the number of women in management positions. Merkel and Family Affairs Minister Kristina Shröeder have so far rejected the idea of imposing laws, but Labour Minister Ursula von der Leyen said the targets set by businesses on Monday were "insufficient." Top corporations in Norway, France, and Spain are all required under law to make sure that at least a third of management is female.