SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California requires every public company to have at least one female on its board of directors. Here is how Sacramento areas companies are doing.
50/50 Women on Boards found 40% of California companies still need to add women.
These are the nine largest public companies in the Sacramento area according to the Sacramento Business Journal's 2020 list.
- Alto Ingredients Inc
- PowerSchool Holdings Inc.
- River City Bank
- Five Star Bancorp
- Marone Bio Innovations Inc.
- Sunworks Inc.
- American River Bankshares (Became part of Bank of Marin in 2021)
- Golden Pacific Bank
- Sunstock, Inc.
All but Sunstock, Inc. meets the current law.
Based on that 2018 law, boards need to have up to three women by January and could face heavy fines for not doing so.
Nearly 70 percent of the region’s public companies would not be up to those new standards based on their current board members. Only PowerSchool Holdings, Sunworks, and Bank of Marin meet them.
"Women are often more open to taking risks," said 5050 Women on Boards COO Heather Spilsbury, "and when you do have women on your board, you add profitability and productivity."
50/50 Women on Board is the largest global campaign aimed at increasing diversity on boards of directors. They track progress as well.
"For California specifically, what we have noticed is that since 2017, and since the law was enacted, the rate of change for how women are joining corporate boards has increased dramatically," Spilsbury said.
"It's important to have more than one woman on a board because then you have women who can support each other and have a voice within that platform," she said.
While none of the Sacramento area companies responded to requests for comment, other California-based companies hopped at the opportunity.
“Our company develops technologies that allow the exploration of DNA,” Illumina CMO Susan Tousi said. Illumina is based in San Diego.
“I think when you seek to have the best talent, you end up with diversity,” Tousi said.
The board was made up of different genders, races, and ethnicities before the law was passed.
“I think it's a shame that we're still at a point where 40% of companies in California don't have females on their board,” she said.
The Associated Press reports that the state has not fined a single company for ignoring the law, and does not plan on fining companies.
It’s important to note that this law is being challenged in court right now. Judicial Watch sued the state of California claiming the law discriminates based on sex. Although no one responded, some companies may be waiting to see what the outcome is before adding another female board member.
