Verily I say unto you, it is easier for a man to understand GMP equalisation than the mind of a woman.

I welcome the dawn of International Women’s Day with the news that I am Chairing a Pension PlayPen Coffee Morning at 10.30 today which is boldly entitled

The rise of women is not about the fall of men!

You can attend this coffee morning by signing into www.pensionplaypen.com and finding your way to “events”. We’re not publishing any more direct links after we got Zoom Bombed a few weeks ago.

It’s not my title, I think it’s the title from Mary and Holly, who advertise the meeting..

Celebrating IWD 2022 this will be an interactive session about moving away from a ‘mans world’ to celebrate a diverse workplace.

This will no doubt involve lively debate and we thank Mary Spencer and Holly McArthur both from LCP to hold this interactive session.

Mary & Holly will give some examples of their experiences (both positive and negative) in the pensions workplace, then open to questions & comments from the group.

The fun part of working in pensions today is that – at least in the bit I work in – women like Holly and Mary are very much in control. I don’t know enough about reward to know if firms like LCP have a gender pay gap, I suspect there may still be one, but the gap is narrowing fast.

I’d certainly be interested to know whether old lags like me are seen as a menace to this new pensions workforce and whether men like me should fall on our pensions and leave our  jobs – now that would be a balloon debate! I’m encouraged by the title but quite prepared to “exit pursued by a bruised ego”

I can assure you that my chairmanship will admit no “virtue signalling” . No man is so virtuous as he cannot learn from the “me too” movement. Those men who excuse themselves from all accusations of  misogyny, are either saints or unaware of their societal conditioning.

“This is what we find” – as Ian Dury had it – “a sense of humour is required, amongst the bacon rind“. So any at the morning can expect a lively and good-humoured discussion of what’s changing, what’s blocking change and “reasons to be cheerful”.

I look forward to meeting as many as can hit the link at 10.30 am.