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Ex gender quota law R. STAHL

Target Figures to Satisfy Gender Quota Laws

SUITABILITY AND PERSONALITY ARE DECISIVE

The German "law for ensuring equal appointment of men and women to managerial positions in the private and public sectors" obliges listed and co-determined companies to set target figures for increasing the proportion of women on the Supervisory Board, Executive Board or Board of Management, and for the two management levels below.  The first targets had to be set by 30 September 2015.  By 30 June 2017, new target figures had to be defined for the new reporting period, which has been set to five years by the bodies and boards of R. STAHL. A new five-year period began on 1 July 2022; it will run until June 2027. This law applies to R. STAHL AG and R. STAHL Schaltgeräte GmbH.

R. STAHL is a technology company in the field of electrical engineering. The electrical engineering degree programme in Germany traditionally has a very low proportion of women (academic year 2020/2021: 14.8 % (source: Destatis)). As part of our promotion of young talent, our training department has been working for years to inspire and recruit women for technical professions. Our commitment begins with projects in kindergartens, continues with "Inventors' Weeks" for primary school pupils in the second and fourth years, cooperation with secondary schools and extends to offering technology- and practice-related courses of study. In this way, we have succeeded in achieving a 17% share of women in the training sector (as of 1 July 2022). All avenues to leadership positions are open to these female employees. However, it will of course take some time before they will progress to management positions in the company. External female applicants in the technical field, however, are hardly available on the labour market.

When appointing members to boards, bodies and managerial positions, R. STAHL takes only candidates' professional skills and personality into consideration. Gender is not a factor. If positions need to be filled and suitable female and male candidates are available on the market or internally for this purpose, they will be considered in the same way.

Against this background, the Supervisory Board and the Executive Board of R. STAHL AG, as well as the shareholders' meeting and the management of R. STAHL Schaltgeräte GmbH, have intensively dealt with the issue of possible target figures.

 

Targets within the context of the statutory gender quota

The prescribed definitions of the target quota for the proportion of women and justifications and an indication of whether the defined target figures have been achieved during the reference period and, if not, information on the reasons, are reported as follows:

Supervisory Board: On the capital side, the Supervisory Board currently has one female member. This corresponds to a quota of 16.66 % for this part of the Board. On the employee side, the Supervisory Board currently has one female member. This corresponds to a quota of 33.33 % for this part of the Board. The proportion of women for the entire Board is thus 22.22 %. The current term of office expires at the end of the Annual General Meeting in 2028. Until then, changes in the composition are not to be anticipated.

In June 2022, the target for the full Supervisory Board and the employee and shareholder representatives on the Supervisory Board was set at 33.33% until 30 June 2027. This target was achieved at the time it was set. Following the new composition of the Supervisory Board at the 2023 Annual General Meeting, the target ratio for the Supervisory Board is currently undercut, at least for the full Supervisory Board and the shareholder representatives, until there is another change on the Supervisory Board. The reason for this is that a shareholder representative is due to step down from the Supervisory Board later in the performance period. Due to the personal skill requirements at the time, the vacancy was filled by a male candidate, Dennis Stahl, which meant that the proportion of women fell below the set targets. In the subsequent Supervisory Board elections, this candidate was put forward for re-election, as his personal skills and experience were particularly well suited to the requirements of the board and were considered essential for ensuring professional continuity. Dennis Stahl’s personal skills profile was given priority over filling the role to meet a specific quota.

The Supervisory Board remains committed to the agreed target and will work towards achieving the set targets again at the earliest possible opportunity when making future nominations and filling vacancies.

Executive Board: The electrical engineering sector is still strongly represented by men. As there are very few suitable female candidates available, the target for the Board in terms of current and future Board membership remains at 0 % by 30 June 2027. The current status was thus recorded. The Supervisory Board does not consider a change in the composition of the Executive Board solely for the purpose of increasing the quota of women to be reasonable. Nor is there currently any discussion of potentially expanding the Executive Board to ensure a quota for women.

The Executive Board of R. STAHL AG also made the following determinations for the two management levels below the Executive Board in June 2022:

The proportion of women in the first level below the Executive Board is to be 0 % by 30 June 2027, and 33.33 % in the second level. This corresponds to the actual conditions at the time of the determination. At the time of issuing this statement, the proportion of women at the first management level below the Executive Board is 16.67% and at the second management level 5.6%.

Targets within the context of the statutory gender quota

The shareholders' meeting has made the following determination:

Supervisory Board: The Supervisory Board of R. STAHL Schaltgeräte GmbH (three members and co-determined in accordance with the German One-Third Participation Act) currently has no female members. The term of office began in 2020 and expires in 2025. Changes are not intended. Therefore, the target is 0%.

Management Board: The Management Board of R. STAHL Schaltgeräte GmbH currently has no female members. Changes are not intended. Therefore, the target is 0%.

The Management Board has made the following determination for the two management levels below the Management Board:

The share of women in the first level below the Management Board is 13%, in the second level, it is 6%. This corresponds to the actual conditions at the time of the determination.

                                                                                         

Earlier information about "Gender Quote" can be found here