Estimated read time: Less than a minute
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
BRUSSELS (AP) - The European Parliament has backed a proposal calling for a 40 percent quota of women on company boards by 2020.
The EU parliament approved the proposal by a 459-148 vote with 81 abstentions on Wednesday, but the toughest test will come when it goes to member states for further discussion as soon as next month.
EU Commission Vice President Viviane Reding called the resolution a "historic moment for gender equality in Europe."
The Commission says that last year less than 15 percent of board members at Europe's biggest companies were women.
(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
