Let’s accelerate action for gender equality

The theme of International Women’s Day this year is #AccelerateAction. It’s been prompted by a shocking prediction by the World Economic Forum. Achieving complete gender equality will take until the year 2158, about five generations from now, at the current pace. 

This timeline is unacceptable.  

We’re taking as many steps as possible to equalise opportunities. We need to elevate the awareness and importance of gender equality.  

We’re not perfect. Our recent salary report showed that, although more women work at Tyler Grange than men, men tend to hold more senior positions. 

This means we still need to work on closing our gender pay gap. Being honest about this issue is crucial and helps us speed up our efforts. 

By sharing what we know and giving each other encouragement, we can close the gap sooner than 2158, together. 

At Tyler Grange, we love marking the day with a thoughtful gesture that honours the amazing women we work with. When we heard about this year’s theme, “Accelerate Action,” we wanted something special. 

That’s when we turned to Daisy Shayler, the owner of Dill.

We ordered 51 bespoke candles for our team. Each one carries a custom logo and a scent that celebrates women’s strength. On March 8th, we’ll light the wick and take a moment to show solidarity, remembering all the remarkable women who’ve fought for equality. 

But Daisy’s contribution didn’t stop there. She shared her own experience as a busy mum running a small business. We chatted about what it’s like, and whether enough is being done to help more women succeed. Here’s what she had to say. 

Daisy is a busy mum. She runs Dill by herself, balancing it with raising her two young daughters and working another job part-time. She creates seasonal soy wax candle collections, supplying a variety of boutique shops on a wholesale basis. Daisy also collaborates with businesses and individuals to craft bespoke scents for special events and brands. 

Dill was originally founded in 2021 by Daisy’s sister, Tilly, during lockdown. The business was launched as a homeware and lifestyle store inspired by Nana Dill. Over time, the focus of Dill shifted to selling candles exclusively, though the influence of Nana Dill remains at the heart of the brand. 

Running a business, working a part-time job and being a mum to two young children is incredibly challenging. It’s even harder when the odds are stacked against you. Research from the Office of National Statistics has found that women are carrying out 60% more unpaid work than men on average.  

“On average men do 16 hours a week of such unpaid work, which includes adult care and child care, laundry and cleaning, to the 26 hours of unpaid work done by women a week.” – Office for National Statistics, 2016 

What’s alarming about these statistics is that we’re not surprised by them anymore. It’s just one example of how women in our society often work much harder without getting more recognition. 

Daisy manages her business, her childcare and her part time job in what she describes as, “a never-ending loop of juggling”. However, it’s the females in her life that inspire her to keep going. They motivate her to drive the business forward and challenge herself further, taking the business in new directions.  

This year’s IWD theme holds and important message, not only for us to take action, but to take it swiftly and bring about meaningful change as soon as possible.  

 “I think we have much, much further to go in achieving gender equality, especially for women of colour and trans women.” – Daisy 

According to TransActual UK’s survey in 2021, 85% of trans women reported being subjected to transphobic street harassment from strangers. A landmark report from the Fawcett Society found: 

• 75% of women of colour experienced racism at work 

• 39% of women of colour stated their wellbeing had been impacted by a lack of progression. 

These recent survey results are alarming on their own, but the sheer scale of these numbers makes one thing clear – the need for change is urgent and unavoidable. Meaningful progress will only happen if we come together and take action now. 

We’re proud to be able to collaborate with Dill in celebration of International Women’s Day. By working with Daisy, we want to encourage more businesses and individuals to support her amazing work. We want our candles to symbolically light the way for accelerated, decisive action for women’s equality.  

Each of us can help every day by calling out stereotypes, challenging discrimination, questioning bias and celebrating women’s success. There are many ways to #AccelerateAction, from expanding women’s economic opportunities to uplifting future leaders, engineers and artists. 

Want to learn more about how we support our community? Keep learning.