Gender Equality

The UK Issue

Women in the labour market

Why does gender equality remain a challenge in the UK in the 21st century? They passed all the laws away back in the 1970s, didn’t they?

Yes, they did, but how come women still seem to be losing out? After all, they make up 47% of the Scottish workforce. Check out the statistics below.

Earnings

• Full time male workers still earn 13% more than women
• Women in full-time work earn 17% less than men
• Women graduates earn £3,000 less than male graduates in Scotland
• Female apprentices earn 26% less than male apprentices

Work patterns

• Two out of five employed women work part-time
• One in ten men works part-time

Work life balance

• Work-life balance policies may have helped women to combine work and domestic care responsibilities, but they have also reinforced the idea that the juggling act is a woman’s responsibility

Opportunities

• Girls are performing extremely well at school, but this isn’t being reflected in their salaries when they move into work
• Many women in Scotland get low pay and work in low skilled jobs
• Professional women in the financial and legal sectors don’t earn as much as men

Why do these differences remain? And what’s it going to be like when it’s your turn to be going out into the world to earn your living?

Enabling women to put their skills and talents to full use in the work place is a ‘win win’ situation for everyone: the country gets more prosperous and everyone gets fair reward for their contribution to the economy.

A recent government report called ‘Shaping a Fairer Future’ says that the future success of the UK economy depends on having women as key players in the workforce.

This report says that we must take action now to improve the career opportunities and prospects for women currently in the work force, not to mention taking steps to protect the prospects of future generations of girls.