Equality aids profit as well as justice

Mar 10 2008 by Kevin Rowan, The Journal

WOMEN account for more than half the population and make up more than half the workforce, and this is likely to increase in the immediate future.

Thirty years since the Equal Pay Act, wages and opportunity remain unequal, affecting the lives of women at work and in the community.

A radical culture change is needed to challenge assumptions about women’s role at work and in society.

Women earn 17% less per hour on average than men; women in part-time work earn 38% less than the hourly rate for men in full-time work.

In the North East the pay gap is even more pronounced with women earning just 61.3% of male earnings and women are over-represented in part-time and lower paid roles. Last year men in the region earned £440 a week against £350.30 for women.

Access to learning and skills development, the way a business works, recruitment, reward systems and career structures all have an impact on the gender pay gap.

It is now well recognised that some women face particular barriers to improve their skills and gain secure employment. Major changes in employer behaviour are required to overcome the training divide and for the success of the Leitch “Skills Pledge”. Women on average have fewer educational qualifications than men, although girls outperform boys in all parts of the education system.

Although women are likely to receive slightly more on-the-job training than men, it is less likely to lead to a formal qualification, which would help career progression.

But there has been an increase in training since 2005 from 26% to 30% of employees, largely attributed to more participation by women, up from 26% to 33% against 27% for men.

Helping women and men to break into sectors where they are under-represented and to succeed in acquiring skills and qualifications in those sectors is a major challenge.

Employers have a key role to play and much to gain from reducing occupational segregation. This is not just an equality issue but a business productivity one too.

Many mothers want work, but find they have to trade down to get the flexibility they need, leading to under-employment and poorer performance.

Long working hours in Britain, coupled with lack of affordable childcare make balancing work and home life hard. Women are still widely thought to be better at caring for children, although this is starting to wane. Men who want to undertake caring responsibilities often meet resistance from employers, making breaking the mould difficult.