Cellular Solutions Defends Controversial Staff Gender Balance

Firm Explains Why Its Four Male Managers Hired 27 Young Women
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Cellular Solutions, the telecoms firm which came under fire on Wednesday over its gender-divided office, has mounted a robust defence of its hiring practises.

The firm was accused of "sexism" and having a "laughable" gender balance on social media, as it showed on its "Meet the Staff" page that all four of its senior managers are men, while the rest of its 27 staff are young, white and attractive white women.

The entirety of Cellular Solutions' senior management

In a statement, Cellular Solutions announced it would be removing the "meet the staff" page following "inaccurate and inappropriate comments about our staff and our recruitment policy". The sudden popularity of Cellular Solution's staff page on social media caused its website to crash, with it left "under maintenance."

The firm added: "The “meet the staff” page was designed for our clients to put a face to the name of the people they deal with here and now that page has been taken out of context we feel it is no longer appropriate."

"We are an equal opportunities employer and will remain so. We are proud of our team and remain committed to their individual development."

Employment experts told the Huffington Post UK that Cellular Solutions gender balance was "unusual", "peculiar" and risked looking "seedy".

Kate Russell, of Russell HR Consulting, said: "It looks rather peculiar to have so many young women being brought into this business.

"It could be a coincidence, but it does seem odd. It may well lead to questions being asked about their recruitment strategy.

Russell added: "If your recruitment strategy is to go for people of a particular type and you recruit them because they’re a particular type rather than having the skills to the job, that is both illegal and seedy.

"Even if it’s totally okay, it’s good business sense to have a mix of ages, types and racial backgrounds. In an ideal world, you should be looking for a business that reflects your local population."

Jennifer Nicol, partner at the law firm Doyle Clayton, said: "Alas this type of gender imbalance is not just common but prevalent in FTSE companies and throughout the City of London generally.

"Some businesses (but sadly very few) are getting to grips with the issue."

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