THE PHILIPPINES ranked fourth in Southeast Asia in a study measuring the percentage of women holding leadership positions in e-commerce companies, online shopping company iPrice Group said.
With 39% of top-level positions in e-commerce firms held by women in the third quarter of 2020, the Philippines dropped to fourth out of the seven countries studied after holding the top spot in 2018.
“Hong Kong has the highest percentage of women in power in the top e-commerce companies in Southeast Asia, where 55% of the top-level roles are actually women,” iPrice said.
Vietnam and Hong Kong followed with 46% and 44%, respectively. Malaysia trailed the Philippines with 37%, followed by Indonesia (36%) and Singapore (35%).
“Overall, there is a 60-40 disparity between men and women when it comes to being in positions of power,” the report said.
The gender gap in Southeast Asia is wider for C-level and vice-president roles, with only 31% and 38% of the positions held by women.
But the gap shrinks with senior vice-president roles, 44% of which are taken on by women. Similarly, department heads in these firms are 41% women.
The Philippines last year topped a list of 32 countries in a global survey on the role of women in senior management. The Grant Thornton International 2020 Women in Business report showed that 43% of female executives were in a senior leadership role, compared to the 29% of female executives globally.
The iPrice report also found that Filipinos in e-commerce are the second-most “satisfied” with their jobs in Southeast Asia, after Indonesia.
“They give their top 3 e-commerce companies a 3.8-star rating, while 76% of them would recommend the companies to friends, and 87% of them approve of their CEOs,” iPrice said, but noted that the Philippines also has one of the lowest recorded salaries among the countries studied. — Jenina P. Ibanez