Women's Views on News |
| Posted: 22 Mar 2016 02:41 PM PDT
The current UK government is complicit in a system that is undermining productivity and perpetuating the gender pay gap, a report by the Women and Equalities Select Committee has found. And evidence shows the gender pay gap will persist unless government policy changes. The Women and Equalities Committee was appointed by the House of Commons on 3 June 2015 to examine the expenditure, administration and policy of the Government Equalities Office (GEO). The report, agreed by an 11-person cross-party committee of MPs, highlights the lack of effective policy in many of the areas that contribute to the gender pay gap. It finds that the key causes of pay differentials are the part-time pay penalty; women's disproportionate responsibility for childcare and other forms of unpaid caring; and the concentration of women in highly feminised, low paid sectors like care, retail and cleaning. And although the government has committed to eliminating the 19.2 per cent pay gap within a generation, it has remained at around the same level for the past four years. Women aged over 40 are most affected by the gender pay gap, with women aged 50-59 facing a 27 per cent differential, and evidence suggests that the barriers to well-paid work currently experienced by women over 40 will continue unless action is taken to address the root causes of the gender pay gap. The report concludes that: Supporting men and women to share childcare and other forms of unpaid caring more equally is one of the most effective policy levers in reducing the gender pay gap; Many women are trapped in low paid, part-time work below their skill level. This contributes to pay disparities, and the under-utilisation of women's skills costs the UK economy up to 2 per cent GDP, around £36 billion; Not enough is being done to support women returning to work if they have had time out of the labour market; and Too little attention has been focused on the situation of women working in low-paid, highly feminised sectors like care, retail and cleaning. Until their rates of pay and progression improve, the gender pay gap will not be eliminated. The report does find that attitudes to work and caring are changing, with employers are increasingly recognising that workplaces need to change and that flexible working benefits men, women and the bottom line. This does not however mean part-time work, which is underpaid. The chair of the committee, Maria Miller, MP, said: “The gender pay gap is holding back women and that isn't going to change unless the government changes its policies now. “The pay gap represents a massive loss to the UK's economy and we must address it in the face of an ageing workforce, a skills crisis and the need for a more competitive economy. “If the government is serious about long-term, sustainable growth it must invest in tackling the root causes of the gender pay gap. “Adopting our recommendations would be a significant step towards achieving the goal of eliminating the gender pay gap within a generation.” To read the full report, click here.  |
| The motherhood penalty and the Daddy Bonus Posted: 22 Mar 2016 06:40 AM PDT
A new survey, published by campaigning charity the Fawcett Society recently, has revealed the true impact of having children on the way women and men are treated at work. Mothers experience a motherhood penalty and are viewed as less committed, while fathers receive a 'daddy bonus', and are regarded as more committed. A poll of over 8,000 people found that when a woman has a baby, 46 per cent of people believed she becomes less committed to her job, compared to just 11 per cent believing a man becomes less committed. In stark contrast 29 per cent of people believe fathers become more committed, compared to just 8 per cent for mothers. The survey, carried out by Survation, also found that many fathers want to care but are struggling to do so, with 75 per cent of men taking two weeks or less off at the birth of their child and a third (33 per cent) of fathers taking only 1-5 days. Four in 10 fathers (41 per cent) said they did not get enough leave. It appears that in order to care for their children men are resorting to lying to their bosses – 38 per cent of fathers said they lie to spend time caring for their children. This compares to 28 per cent of mothers who lie. One third of fathers (35 per cent) in employment said men who take time off work to care for children are not supported at work. But the poll also showed that the desire for flexible working is now universal. Over two thirds (68 per cent) of those surveyed said that when they think about their career choices they think about whether a job is likely to allow them to balance work and family. This rises to 72 per cent for fathers and 79 per cent for mothers. Commenting on these figures, Sam Smethers, chief executive of the Fawcett Society, said: "The motherhood penalty and daddy bonus are still a strong feature of our workplaces. "It's clear that when a woman has a baby she is overwhelmingly perceived as becoming less committed to her job, while a dad is much more likely to be seen as more committed. "This drives inequality and forces women and men into traditional male breadwinner, female carer roles. "Mums, Dads – all of us – are clearly crying out for flexibility, but we know that [according to The Timewise Flexible Jobs Index 2015] few jobs are advertised as flexible working jobs. "This is why we need a new option – flexibility first. "We need to start from a different place and assume that all jobs are flexible working jobs unless there is a good business case for them not to be. "In the absence of decent leave entitlements and flexible working it is not surprising that mums and dads find a way around it and lie to their bosses in order to care for their children. "We need a decent, dedicated period of leave for dads, paid closer to replacement income rate so that they can afford to take it." The survey also asked parents who was carrying out the tasks associated with the care of children and found that women are still doing the lion's share. But significantly there was a gap in perception – with men almost twice as likely as women to think that tasks are equally shared. Tasks included taking time off if children were ill, taking children to the dentist, arranging playdates, washing the children's clothes or taking them to school. For 9 out of 10 tasks asked about, men said they are mostly the responsibility of their child's other parent. 28 per cent of men say this mostly their responsibility and 21 per cent said it is mostly the responsibility of their child's other parent. Women disagreed. 60 per cent of women said making sure their children do their homework is mostly their responsibility. Men are least likely to say that organising playdates and children's parties is their responsibility, with only 18 per cent saying this, while 7 per cent of women said it is the responsibility of their child's other parent. Only 13 per cent of women said it is shared equally. Across all tasks, on average 37 per cent of men said that they were equally shared while just 20 per cent of women said the same. Sam Smethers added: "Many women will identify with these findings. Childcare is about more than time spent caring for children. "It's all the other stuff that goes with it too. "But the lack of flexibility and pressure on Dads at work means women are still doing the bulk of the caring and the work around childcare." The theme of International Women's Day was the 'pledge for parity' but, as Smethers said, "until we start to see a more equal sharing of care we won't achieve equality at work and we won't close the pay gap." To read the full report, click here.  |
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