| View this email in your browser. January 22, 2021
Good morning, Broadsheet readers! Jen Psaki makes her debut as White House press secretary, Rep. Liz Cheney’s vote for impeachment inspires some GOP backlash, and Citigroup updates its gender pay gap. Have a relaxing weekend.
– Mind the gap. Citigroup remains one of the few companies to offer the public a glimpse of its gender pay gap. On Thursday, the bank issued an update on where it stands.
Women at the company globally earned roughly 26% less than their male counterparts’ median pay last year, a slight improvement over the 27% gap in 2019, and 29% gulf in 2018. The bank said that “U.S. minorities” earned 6% less than the median pay of non-minorities, which is similar to 2019 figures and an improvement from 7% in 2018.
This type of pay gap analysis—referred to as unadjusted—looks at aggregate numbers rather than comparing employees with the same title or experience, so Citigroup’s stats reflect a dearth of women in positions higher on the pay scale. By the end of this year, the bank wants to increase representation at the assistant vice president through managing director levels to at least 40% for women globally and 8% for Black employees in the U.S.
The bank says it’s making some headway by requiring managers to interview multiple diverse candidates instead of just one.
Still, Citigroup’s head of HR Sara Wechter told Bloomberg, the effort to shrink the pay gap “keeps me up at night because I know it’s a lot of work, but we’ve got to be delivering against these things.”
Indeed, you’d like to see the bank’s pay gaps closing at a quicker pace. But the bank does stand out—for its transparency, and for not following the lead of, say, the U.K., which cited the pandemic as a reason to delay some diversity efforts. What’s more, Citigroup’s numbers likely run counter to the overall trend; economists expect the COVID-19 crisis to widen the gender pay gap in the U.S. by five percentage points.
Claire Zillman
[email protected]
@clairezillman
Today’s Broadsheet was curated by Emma Hinchliffe.
A note from Fortune What you need to know in this moment of change Unlock market insights from leading experts and news analysis that gives you an edge. Save 40% with an annual premium subscription. Subscribe now ALSO IN THE HEADLINES
- Financing the future. Janet Yellen's Treasury Department is beginning to take shape, although Yellen hasn't yet been confirmed by the Senate. In this story, the nominee weighs in on her plans for tax policy, the relationship between the Treasury and the Fed, foreign sanctions, and more. Fortune
- Global view. World leaders are responding to Biden's inauguration as the Biden administration begins to work on U.S. relationships abroad. German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned that while she expects a smoother relationship now than with Trump, Biden should still expect "arguments" between the two countries and between the U.S. and Europe. The presence at the inauguration of Bi-khim Hsiao, Taiwan's de-facto U.S. ambassador, signaled the new direction of the relationship between the U.S. and Taiwan.
- Briefing report. Jen Psaki's debut as press secretary on Wednesday grabbed a lot of attention for its return to form after four years of an unusual relationship between the White House and the press. Members of the women-led White House communications team appeared at an event by The 19th* to talk about how they plan to rebuild trust with journalists and with the American people.
- Press pack. The other side of the White House-press relationship will also be women-led in the coming months. Four major networks—ABC, CBS, NBC, and CNN—have tapped female reporters for the chief White House correspondent roles. The journalists include Cecilia Vega, Nancy Cordes, Kristen Welker, and Kaitlan Collins. Glamour
MOVERS AND SHAKERS: U.K. gambling company Entain named Jette Nygaard-Andersen CEO, making her the sixth woman to currently run a FTSE 100 business. Randi Zuckerberg joins the board of Life360. Foursquare hired Michele Morelli as SVP of marketing. HubSpot's Cindy Goodrich joins BetterUp as CMO.
CONTENT FROM PWC What’s keeping companies from doing better? Sixty-eight percent of leaders believe their business serves the greater good, but only 15% of the wider public agrees. We need to act to help close the gap. We recently surveyed US business leaders, employees and the public to understand what fosters and inhibits trust. These findings shaped actionable steps to help companies fight for social justice and take action, Now.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
- Against the 'green wave.' As parts of Latin America move to legalize or lessen restrictions on abortion, lawmakers in Honduras are taking steps to ensure that abortion could never become legal in the country. The constitutional reform would require three-fourths approval for any future changes to Honduras's prohibition against abortion under all circumstances. Guardian
- Impeachment aftermath. After Rep. Liz Cheney voted in favor of impeaching President Trump, she's facing a challenger in her GOP primary in Wyoming. What's more, some House Republicans are now circulating a petition calling on Cheney to resign from her leadership position in the Republican caucus. WSJ
- Recovery warning. Sweden's finance minister, Magdalena Andersson, is worried about a "K-shaped recovery" that sees the country's rich get richer and the vulnerable continuing to lose income during the coronavirus pandemic. Her goal is to restart the economy to be "greener and more equal." Bloomberg
ON MY RADAR
Jazmine Sullivan, H.E.R. to sing at Super Bowl The Hollywood Reporter
Joan Didion's new collection of old essays holds the key to her shimmer L.A. Times
Olivia Rodrigo’s 'Drivers License' became the world’s biggest song via TikTok WSJ
PARTING WORDS
"Generations of women have served in this role before me—often without much accolade or acknowledgment. It’s their legacy of progress I will build on."
-Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff
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