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Firms face quota deadline (Norway)
www.aftenposten.no ^ | 12 Oct 2007, 15:15 | Aftenposten English Web Desk

Posted on 10/15/2007 2:38:46 AM PDT by Kurt_Hectic

Norway's center-left government has issued a warning to 140 companies that still don't have enough women on their boards of directors: Appoint more, or be dissolved.

Companies organized as "ASA" corporations are required to meet a state-mandated quota that calls for 40 percent of their directors to be women.

The quota was ushered in during the previous center-right government coalition, and has been enthusiastically embraced by the current Labour Party-led government.

Equality minister Karita Bekkemellem told newspaper Aftenposten on Friday that those companies failing to meet the quota will face involuntary dissolution from January 1. Many are within traditionally male-oriented branches like the offshore oil industry, shipping and finance.

Among the firms targeted on Bekkemellem's list are some fairly large companies including Det Norske Oljeselskap ASA, securities firm Carnegie ASA, Awilco Offshore and Frontier Drilling. Some of the stocklisted companies have no women at all on their boards of directors, including DNO, Ocean Rig, PetroJack and Teco Maritime.

"My advice to them is that they take responsibility and find the women they need," she said. She called the law "historic and radical," and said it will be enforced.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; Foreign Affairs
KEYWORDS: feminism; norway; womanquota
Ah, the wonderful world of Scandinavian feminism: adapt or die! This means that in order to avoid liquidation, firms are at worst forced to employ incompetent women in their boards! That'l do wonders for the norwegian economy, I'm sure.
1 posted on 10/15/2007 2:38:50 AM PDT by Kurt_Hectic
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To: Kurt_Hectic

Crikey. Whatever next?


2 posted on 10/15/2007 2:42:29 AM PDT by DieHard the Hunter (Is mise an ceann-cinnidh. Cha ghéill mi do dhuine. Fàg am bealach.)
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To: Kurt_Hectic
Equality minister Karita Bekkemellem

Equality minister?!??

3 posted on 10/15/2007 2:46:04 AM PDT by andyandval
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To: Kurt_Hectic

Move the company off shore


4 posted on 10/15/2007 2:53:41 AM PDT by taxcontrol
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To: Kurt_Hectic

> Companies organized as “ASA” corporations are required to meet a state-mandated quota that calls for 40 percent of their directors to be women.

Can someone please advise: what is an “ASA” company? presumably it means something like “publicly listed” and “privately owned”?


5 posted on 10/15/2007 2:59:50 AM PDT by DieHard the Hunter (Is mise an ceann-cinnidh. Cha ghéill mi do dhuine. Fàg am bealach.)
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To: andyandval

Jupp! Orwellesque, isn’t it?


6 posted on 10/15/2007 3:01:05 AM PDT by Kurt_Hectic (Trust only what you see, not what you hear)
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To: DieHard the Hunter

You’re right. It means “public limited company”.


7 posted on 10/15/2007 3:03:04 AM PDT by Kurt_Hectic (Trust only what you see, not what you hear)
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To: Kurt_Hectic
Someday their oil money will run out and reality will hit them with a vengence.
8 posted on 10/15/2007 3:10:32 AM PDT by Red Dog #1
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To: andyandval; Kurt_Hectic
Equality minister Karita Bekkemellem Equality minister?!??

I believe they will soon apoint a "Happiness Minister" whose job it will be to place financial penalties on all companies who do not have 100% Happy employees.

9 posted on 10/15/2007 3:34:50 AM PDT by SkyPilot
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To: Kurt_Hectic
Jupp! Orwellesque, isn’t it?

Even better: wasn't it Nazi policy to require party members on the boards of major German companies?

10 posted on 10/15/2007 5:42:39 AM PDT by Grut
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To: Grut

Yep...the ones that the Nazis simply didn’t take over and hand to their Party cronies outright. As often as not, existing board members just ponied up huge contributions to the Party to keep their positions.

}:-)4


11 posted on 10/15/2007 7:38:05 AM PDT by Moose4 (Ron Paul is like a beautiful plate of food ruined by a cow patty.)
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