White men are becoming an “endangered species” in top business jobs as companies take on more women and ethnic minorities, Tesco’s chairman has said.
John Allan told a retail conference “the pendulum has swung very significantly” – even though white men still dominate in UK boardrooms.
He said it was an “extremely propitious period” to be “female and from an ethnic background and preferably both”.
Mr Allan later said his comments were intended to be “humorous”.
In his speech, the day after International Women’s Day, about the recruitment of prospective non-executive directors, Mr Allan said: “For a thousand years men have got most of these jobs, the pendulum has swung very significantly the other way now and will do for the foreseeable future I think.
“If you are a white male – tough – you are an endangered species and you are going to have to work twice as hard.”
Mr Allan sits alongside eight other white men and three white women on Tesco’s board.
Labour’s Yvette Cooper, who chairs the Home Affairs Select Committee, reacted on Twitter.
Meanwhile, Sophie Walker, the leader of the Women’s Equality party, joined calls for a boycott of Tesco saying, that Mr Allan was out of touch and his comments risk alienating customers.
She also highlighted data released by the Fawcett Society this week that suggested the pay gap was influenced by racial and gender inequalities, saying both groups were a “long way from endangering men’s dominance of boardrooms”.
Campaign group Women’s March on London said Mr Allen’s comments were “extraordinary” and the company should “step-up and show the world that diversity in leadership is no joke”.
A spokeswoman said: “We call on the Tesco Board of Directors to commit to prioritise diversifying their board and provide a clear path with set targets on how they intend to do so.
“As consumers we are a powerful force and can exercise our freedom to shop elsewhere to support women and locally owned businesses. We encourage all of our marchers to do so until Tesco steps up.”
But businesswoman Helena Morrissey, a campaigner for greater gender diversity in the boardroom, tweeted that media reports of Mr Allan’s speech had put an “unfair spin on what he’s trying to say”.
