Alberta's security regulator is proposing 'disclose or explain' rules as a way to narrow the gender gap in Alberta boardrooms.

The new rules will require Alberta-based companies which are listed on major stock exchanges such as the Toronto Stock Exchange, to disclose the number of women on their boards and in executive management.

If adopted by the Alberta Securities Commission, publicly traded companies would also be required to disclose any gender-parity policies which inform hiring practices or the selection of executive officers.

In 2015, women held only nine per cent of board positions on Alberta-based, TSX-listed companies.

The new rules would help shatter the glass ceiling, said Stephanie McLean, Alberta's minister of status of women.

"Women today are well educated, trained and have the leadership, business skills and experience to match their male counterparts," she said.

'Too few women at the CEO level'

"We have a woman premier, a woman deputy premier, and a woman chief justice, and a woman at the head of Alberta's public service. Yet we still see relatively too few women at the CEO level in corporate Alberta," McLean said.

"It's time we achieve gender balance at all decision-making tables in Alberta — including corporate boardrooms — and this is an important step."

The amendments would bring Alberta in line with most other jurisdictions in Canada. All provinces and territories, with the exception of Alberta and British Columbia, adopted the disclosure amendments in November 2014.

The ASC rejected the rule change in 2014 over questions whether the composition of boards was within the commission's mandate, said chair Stan Magidson Wednesday.

"On further reflection, and at the request of the government who asked us to reconsider this, we have taken a fresh look at it," he said.

Two years later, the commission sees things differently, Magidson said.

"It's not about what the actual composition of your board is or isn't, but it's that you provide sunlight on this matter to shareholders at large from which they can make their investment decisions."

The glass ceiling

Despite the increased accountability, corporate Canada remains largely impregnable to women.

Women make up nearly half of the Canadian workforce, yet only one-quarter hold senior management positions and fewer than 16 per cent serve as directors, the province said.

Almost half of companies listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange still have no women on their boards.

If adopted, the amendments would require the listed companies, or non-venture issuers, to provide annual disclosure of the following items:

policies regarding the representation of women on the board, if any;

whether the board or its nominating committee considers the representation of women in the director identification and selection process;

whether the company considers the representation of women in executive officer positions when making executive officer appointments;

targets regarding the representation of women on the board and in executive officer positions, if any have been set by the issuer;

the number of women on the board and in executive officer positions; and

director term limits or other mechanisms of board renewal

The suggested changes are subject to a 30-day comment period, before a final vote can be made.