Transcript Gender Inequalities

Gender Inequalities
Despite legislation women still
missing out
Missing from Senior Jobs
• EOC (Equal Opportunities Commission) survey…”Sex &
Power-Who Runs Scotland? Claims that women are still
missing out on senior positions in all areas of work,
despite legislation.
• EOC estimates that women “missing” from top jobs in
Scotland include:–
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111 from public appointments
106 from secondary schools
21 missing MPs
16 Senior Police officers
14 MSPs
13 judges
• This survey compares the progress of
women in the workplace with that of a
snail. It claims that the snail would be able
to crawl the length of the Great Wall of
China (212 years) before women were
equally represented in parliament.
• This may be over-exaggeration but it
cannot be denied that, although progress
has occurred, it has been slow.
• Women still comprise less than one fifth of
the House of Commons, even after the
working hours were overhauled
• Barriers which stand in the way of female
progress have to be dismantled, according
to the EOC
• A sharing of power of top jobs is
suggested as is the possibility of flexible
working hours even for senior posts.
• The EOC calculates that, at current rate of
progress in Britain, it would take 20 years
to achieve equality in the civil service top
management, 40 years in the judiciary and
60 years at FTSE 100 director level
• It is claimed that Scotland is still a long
way from being an equal nation.
• Women earn less at both full time and part
time jobs
• Women spend 78% MORE time on
household chores than men, even if both
work full time
• It is 30 years since the Equal Pay Act
became law yet “women’s work”……the 5
‘C’s’……is still not fairly rewarded
• For women in Wales the situation appears to be
no better.
• 75% of women working in Wales work in the 5
“C’s”.
• Their retirement income is only 57% of men’s
• They are under-represented at senior levels
with, for example, 78% of NHS staff in Wales
women but only 20% at consultant level
• In Wales only 8 out of 40 MPs are women and
only 4 out of 22 councils have female leaders
• The Trades Union Congress has attacked
the motherhood penalty in the workplace.
It has revealed that the difference between
men’s and women’s pay more than trebles
when women reach their 30’s.
• The gap is smaller whilst in their 20’s but
in the thirties women take home 11.2%
less and in their 40’s – the peak age for
discrimination – the gap rises to 22.8%
• This, claims the TUC, is due to the
“motherhood penalty”.
• PROGRESS????
• The Equality & Human Rights Commission ( new
name for EOC) revealed that fewer women than
5 years ago now hold high-flying jobs in 12 out
of 25 categories.
– Fewer women MPs, Cabinet members, newspaper
editors, senior police officers and judges, NHS
executives, trade union leaders.
– The number of female media bosses, MEPs, directors
of museums, Armed Forces officers remained static
– Women’s presence had increased in only 8 areas
including the House of Lords, company directors,
council leaders, university vice-chancellors and top
civil service managers.
– In 6 out of 8 categories the increase was LESS than
1%
GENDER EQUALITY DUTY
April 6 2007 the Gender Equality Duty came
into effect. It is designed to proactively
tackle policies and practices that
contribute to inequality.
Billed as the biggest change in sex equality
legislation for 30 years.
The emphasis of this legislation lies with
public bodies to ensure that their policies
promote and practice gender equality.
OTHER MEASURES
• The government unveiled measures aimed at boosting
prospects of women in the workplace
• Creating more part time work
• Making girls aware of non-traditional work
• Campaign to encourage businesses to sign up as
exemplar employers offering p/t work, flexible hours,
time-share. More than 80 companies, including BT,BP,
Centrica, BAE Systems, Accenture have signed up.
• Education authority requirement for girls to be offered
career advice that is “free from gender stereotyping”
KEY DATES IN LEGISLATION
• 1970 Equal Pay Act passed
• 1975 Equal Pay Act comes into effect
• 1976 European Commission Equal
Treatment Directive
• 1986 Sex Discrimination Act
• 2006 Equality Act
• 2007 Gender Equality Duty came into
force
THE EQUAL PAY ACT
• It is against the law to discriminate against
a person, consciously or unconsciously, on
the basis of their gender.
• The Equal Pay Act means that men &
women, doing the same or a similar job,
must be paid the same. In addition, men
& women must be paid the same if their
job is “of the same value” and where jobs
are rated as equivalent
THE SEX DISCRIMINATION ACT
• Employers cannot, by law, discriminate
against people on account of their gender.
• There must be transparency within
organisations, showing that they are proactively non-sexist; eg; application forms
and interview procedures must show no
gender discrimination whatsoever
THE NATIONAL MINIMUM WAGE
• Whilst not directly aimed at women, it has
indirectly benefited them more than men as it is
women who are more likely to work in low paid
jobs.
• Legislation has been passed to increase
Paternity leave to allow more men time to look
after children
• A National Childcare Strategy was introduced by
government to improve women’s access to well
paid work
• WOMEN INTO MANAGEMENT…. Many
employers are actively taking own steps to
encourage and facilitate more women into
senior posts. Scotland’s police forces are
examples. The most female-friendly force
is Strathclyde with 22% of its constables,
12% of its Chief Officers, female.
• The Association of Chief Police Officers in
Scotland (ACPOS) is enlisting the help of
prominent businessmen to help young
female police officers go for promotion
PROGRESS?????
• In certain professions, such as law and
medicine, women are beginning to out perform
men. In 2006, 65% of entrants to Scottish law
courses were women, the highest figure ever.
• British Medical Association figures show that
60% of medical students are now women.
• For the first time, the number of women
registered with the General Medical Council is
greater than the number of men