A paper provided a gender analysis of the working and employment conditions of older workers (aged 50 and over) in European countries.
Source: Patricia Vendramin and Gerard Valenduc, A Gender Perspective on Older Workers' Employment and Working Conditions, European Trade Union Institute
Links: Paper | ETUI press release
Date: 2014-Sep
A report examined progress in the promotion of gender equality in public research, and discussed the variety of policies across 31 European countries.
Source: Anke Lipinsky, Gender Equality Policies in Public Research, European Commission
Links: Report | European Commission press release
Date: 2014-Sep
A report provided findings from a research project into blockages that affected women's success in the United Kingdom senior civil service (SCS), building on the findings of an earlier interim report. The research had found that the culture and leadership climate prevented women from progressing into more senior roles, and had examined how to create the right conditions for success through the three lenses of policy, practice, and perception. The report said that overall policy intent was broadly in line with best practice and, with minor amendments, could become leading edge, although line management practice was variable. It said that the key challenge lay in changing people's perceptions, as many people, and women in particular, did not believe the rhetoric on policy, promotions, or what was valued in the SCS and many chose to opt out. The report made a range of recommendations.
Source: Hays Group, Women in Whitehall: Culture, leadership, talent, Cabinet Office
Links: Report | Cabinet Office press release
Date: 2014-Sep
A report examined the relative position of women and men within the emerging economic recovery in the United Kingdom and examined women's experiences in the recovery, drawing on a survey of low paid women. The report said that, since the start of the crisis in 2008, an additional 826,000 women had moved into typically low paid and insecure types of work, female under-employment had almost doubled, and an additional 371,000 women had moved into self-employment. It said that low paid work was contributing to a widening gender pay gap, and low paid women were particularly affected by the cost of living, with nearly half saying they felt worse off now than five years ago, almost 1 in 10 having taken a loan from a pay day lender in the previous twelve months, and almost 1 in 12 low paid women with children having used a food bank in the past twelve months. The report outlined seven priority areas for government action, and recommendations included: an uplift in the minimum wage; the extension of the living wage by encouraging the public sector to lead in its adoption; action on employment tribunal fees; and the implementation of section 78 of the Equality Act 2010 to require mandatory gender pay gap reporting in large companies.
Source: The Changing Labour Market 2: Women, low pay and gender equality in the emerging recovery, Fawcett Society
Links: Report | Fawcett Society press release
Date: 2014-Aug
An article examined the careers of women employed as part-time managers in a range of United Kingdom public, private, and not-for-profit sector organizations, and the influence of mentors or role models. Drawing on semi-structured interviews, it said that careers had often stalled following a transition to part-time work. While the majority of interviewees identified role models, just over half identified these as negative. Around half had been mentored at some stage, but only four at the time of the interview.
Source: Susan Durbin and Jennifer Tomlinson, 'Female part-time managers: careers, mentors and role models', Gender, Work and Organization, Volume 21 Number 4
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Jul
An article examined whether and how gender was related to outcomes of research evaluation via panel assessment and journal ratings lists. Looking at data from business schools in the United Kingdom, it said there was no evidence that panel assessments were affected by the number of submissions from women, but women did, on average, receive lower scores in some journal ratings lists. It also noted differences in the quality rating of journals in which men and women published. It said that women who co-authored with people from other organizations were able to publish in higher-rated journals, while those with individual circumstances such as taking maternity leave or working part-time achieved lower scores in the journal ratings lists.
Source: Chris Brooks, Evelyn Fenton, and James Walker, 'Gender and the evaluation of research', Research Policy, Volume 43 Number 6
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Jul
An article examined women's negative intra-gender relations, through a qualitative study of women elite leaders' experiences in United Kingdom organizations.
Source: Sharon Mavin, Gina Grandy, and Jannine Williams, 'Experiences of women elite leaders doing gender: intra-gender micro-violence between women', British Journal of Management, Volume 25 Issue 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Jul
A report examined the first year's work of the Women's Business Council, established in 2012 to advise business and government on how to progress equality of opportunity in women's careers.
Source: Maximising Women's Contribution to Future Economic Growth: One year on, Women's Business Council
Links: Report | 2013 report | DCMS/Government Equalities Office press release
Date: 2014-Jun
A new book examined gender inequality in the United Kingdom labour market. Chapters discussed: relevant labour market outcomes, international comparisons, the legislative framework, the relationship with wider macroeconomic dynamics, explanations of the gender pay gap, the transition from education to the labour market, occupational segregation, and the division of labour within the household.
Source: Giovanni Razzu (ed.), Gender Inequality in the Labour Market in the UK, Oxford University Press
Links: Summary
Date: 2014-Jun
A paper examined major developments in women's position on the European labour market over the previous two decades, considering issues related to women's employment decisions such as education, maternity, retirement, life-long learning, care choices, flexible employment contracts, and salaries.
Source: Jan Baran, Atilla Bartha, Agnieszka Chlon Dominczak, Olena Fedyuk, Agnieszka Kaminska, Piotr Lewandowski, Maciej Lis, Iga Magda, Monika Potoczna, and Violetta Zentai, Women on the European Labour Market, Policy brief 16.5, NEUJOBS
Links: Paper
Date: 2014-Jun
A paper examined the extent to which motherhood affected women's career accomplishments and wages in Italy and the UK. It said that motherhood had no adverse effects on mothers' wage progressions or career paths in Italy, and that job segregation (the concentration of mothers in less valued sectors and lower paid occupations) explained most of the motherhood wage gap in the UK. It said that findings suggested that the timing of motherhood and job continuity had a significant effect on the female wage profile, which warranted policy attention since it had a potential impact on wage levels and, in the longer term, on pensions.
Source: Eliane El Badaoui and Eleonora Matteazzi, To Be a Mother, or Not to Be? Career and wage ladder in Italy and the UK, Working paper 2014-30, Economix
Links: Paper
Date: 2014-Jun
A report brought together the core findings from a series of six short statistical reports about the reconciliation of work, private, and family life in Europe. It said that the work had highlighted large gender disparities in employment situations between parents and non-parents, with lower employment levels, fewer work hours, and more underemployment among mothers in many western European countries, as compared with women without children and men with or without children. The work had also found persistent inequality among social groups, that certain groups such as single parents were more vulnerable to the challenges of work-life balance, and that long-standing social and cultural norms played a role in perpetuating gender inequality in employment. The report said that there were large differences between European Union member states in levels of, and support for, employment, and that, although the situation varied between countries, childcare and cultural norms regarding children were still important factors in employment decisions. The report concluded that there had not generally been a move away from the 'male breadwinner' model, and said that the findings illustrated the importance of recognizing the heterogeneity among groups (of women, men, parents, or non-parents), the importance of considering gender roles and cultural norms, and a need for work-life reconciliation policies targeting vulnerable groups. The supporting work was published as a series of annexes, alongside this report.
Source: Melinda Mills, Flavia Tsang, Patrick Prag, Kai Ruggeri, Celine Miani, and Stijn Hoorens, Gender Equality in the Workforce: Reconciling work, private and family life in Europe – final report, RAND Europe
Links: Report
Annex 1: Melinda Mills, Patrick Prag, Flavia Tsang, Katia Begall, James Derbyshire, Laura Kohle, Celine Miani, and Stijn Hoorens, Use of Childcare Services in the EU Member States and Progress Towards the Barcelona Targets: Short Statistical Report No. 1, RAND Europe
Links: Report
Annex 2: Celine Miani and Stijn Hoorens, Parents at Work: Men and women participating in the labour force – Short Statistical Report No. 2, RAND Europe
Links: Report
Annex 3: Kai Ruggeri and Chloe Bird, Single Parents and Employment in Europe: Short Statistical Report No. 3, RAND Europe
Links: Report
Annex 4: Melinda Mills and Patrick Prag, Gender Inequalities in the School-to-Work Transition in Europe: Short Statistical Report No. 4, RAND Europe
Links: Report
Annex 5: Flavia Tsang, Michael Rendall, Charlene Rohr, and Stijn Hoorens, Emerging Trends in Earnings Structures of Couples in Europe: Short Statistical Report No. 5, RAND Europe
Links: Report
Annex 6: Patrick Prag and Melinda Mills, Family-Related Working Schedule Flexibility across Europe: Short Statistical Report No. 6, RAND Europe
Links: Report
Date: 2014-May
The Scottish Government began consultation on proposals to seek powers from the United Kingdom government to enable them to legislate to correct gender imbalance on public boards through mandatory quotas that would ensure a minimum of 40 per cent of women's representation. The consultation would close on 4 July 2014.
Source: Women on Board: Quality through diversity – Scottish Government consultation on the introduction of gender quotas on public boards, Scottish Government
Links: Consultation document | Scottish Government press release
Date: 2014-May
An article examined the disadvantage and inequality of female staff in a United Kingdom bank, compared with their male counterparts, drawing on the work of Bourdieu. It said that women were symbolically constructed as different, women faced different problems to men, and women's social capital was not perceived to be the the same as men's. However, the article said that women differed in their views as to whether gender mattered, and some wished to deny being, or resist being seen as, unequal. The article considered possible explanations behind the findings.
Source: Fiona Wilson, 'May the best man win: understanding the lack of meritocracy of women in UK banking', Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, Volume 33 Issue 4
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-May
An article examined the impact of children on female wages in the UK. It said that data indicated that the negative wage gap persisted 30 years after first entering motherhood.
Source: Tarja Viitanen, 'The motherhood wage gap in the UK over the life cycle', Review of Economics of the Household, Volume 12 Issue 2
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-May
A paper examined age-related gender pay differentials and wage returns associated with flexible employment (temporary and part-time jobs) in Europe. It said that there was no consistent pattern of age-specific wage returns from flexible forms of employment, but some differences were seen between Western and Eastern European countries.
Source: Iga Magda and Monika Potoczna, Does Flexible Employment Pay? European evidence on the wage perspectives of female workers, Working Paper 16.3, NEUJOBS
Links: Paper
Date: 2014-Apr
An article examined the gender training gap (defined as the disadvantage of women in receiving work-related continuing training), drawing on data from the first wave of the Adult Education Survey. The article said that, for women holding a university degree, a training gap was found in one of 22 European countries but, for women without a degree, a significant training gap was found in six countries. It said that institutions were linked to the chances of training, and that the gap was enhanced when vocational education and training was geared towards firm-specific skills.
Source: Caroline Wozny and Martin Schneider, 'A matter of degree: the continuing training gap for women in Europe', Socio-Economic Review, Volume 12 Number 2
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Apr
An article examined the ways in which trade unions had used equality legislation to secure equal pay for women through the courts. It considered recent legislative changes that, by adopting a reflexive approach, appeared to open up ways for equality bargaining to take place. However, it said that political conservatism in relation to equality, and judicial animosity towards trade unions, had prevented change – forcing trade unions to continue to use adversarial legal methods to pursue equal pay.
Source: Hazel Conley, 'Trade unions, equal pay and the law in the UK', Economic and Industrial Democracy, Volume 35 Number 2
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Apr
A paper examined to what extent European welfare states supported an individual adult worker model, and how existing policy should be assessed in terms of gender equality.
Source: Janneke Plantenga, Searching for Welfare, Work and Gender Equality, Working Paper 59, WWWforEurope
Links: Paper
Date: 2014-Apr
An article examined the relationship between unionization and the adoption of equal opportunities policies and practices in British workplaces, using data from the 2004 Workplace Employment Relations Survey.
Source: Kim Hoque and Nicolas Bacon, 'Unions, joint regulation and workplace equality policy and practice in Britain: evidence from the 2004 Workplace Employment Relations Survey', Work, Employment and Society, Volume 28 Number 2
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Apr
The equality and human rights watchdog said that almost no progress had been made in Wales in increasing the number of women in senior positions over the previous 10 years, and in some respects the position had worsened.
Source: Who Runs Wales? 2014, Equality and Human Rights Commission
Links: Report | EHRC press release | BBC report
Date: 2014-Mar
A report examined how the gender pay gap (defined as the difference between men's earnings and women's earnings as a percentage of men's earnings) had changed over time, using ONS data sources. It said that the gender pay gap for all staff in the United Kingdom in 2013 was 19.7 per cent – slightly higher than in 2012, but markedly reduced over the longer term.
Source: Secondary Analysis of the Gender Pay Gap: Changes in the gender pay gap over time, Department for Culture, Media and Sport
Links: Report
Date: 2014-Mar
An article examined the results from a qualitative international comparative study into the career trajectories of older women (aged 45 65) in six countries (Australia, Argentina, Germany, Italy, England and South Africa). It discussed women s careers, and career theory and practice for women, across cultures.
Source: Jenny Bimrose, Mark Watson, Mary McMahon, Simone Haasler, Massimo Tomassini, and Pamela Suzanne, 'The problem with women? Challenges posed by gender for career guidance practice', International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance, Volume 14 Issue 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Mar
An article examined how work, marital, and fertility history affected the likelihood of women extending their employment beyond the state pension age. Women were extending paid work for financial reasons to make up for 'opportunity costs' as a result of their caring role within the family, with short breaks due to caring, lengthy marriages, divorcing, and remaining single with children all being important. On the other hand, lengthy detachment (due to caring) from the labour market made extending working life more difficult.
Source: Naomi Finch, 'Why are women more likely than men to extend paid work? The impact of work-family life history', European Journal of Ageing, Volume 11 Number 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Mar
An article examined appointments, pay, and impact on productivity related to gender diversity in boardrooms in the United Kingdom. It said that there was evidence of gender-bias in the appointment of women as non-executive directors, mixed evidence of discrimination in wages or fees paid, but no evidence to support the idea that greater gender diversity on boards enhanced corporate performance.
Source: Ian Gregory-Smith, Brian Main, and Charles O'Reilly, 'Appointments, pay and performance in UK boardrooms by gender', The Economic Journal, Volume 124 Issue 574
Links: Abstract | Royal Economic Society press release
Date: 2014-Mar
An article examined the gender wage gap across European countries. The size of the gender wage gap varied considerably, and most of the gap could not be explained by the data available. But country policies and institutions were related to features of their unexplained gender wage gaps in systematic, quantitatively important, ways.
Source: Louis Christofides, Alexandros Polycarpou, and Konstantinos Vrachimis, 'Gender wage gaps, "sticky floors" and "glass ceilings" in Europe', Labour Economics, Volume 21
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Feb
A report by a committee of MPs said that women remained under-represented at senior levels across every discipline within science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) sectors. It said there was no single explanation for the lack of gender diversity, rather it resulted from a combination of perceptions and biases, plus the impracticalities of combining a career with family. It noted the impact on women of the use of short term contracts for early career posts in academia, which often coincided with a life stage where women were considering motherhood. It called for government to work with the higher education sector to provide more longer-term positions. The report said there was a need for diversity and equality training in the STEM sector, as well as greater mainstreaming of diversity funding to assist efforts to retain women in the disciplines.
Source: Women in Scientific Careers, Sixth Report (Session 201314), HC 701, House of Commons Science and Technology Select Committee, TSO
Links: Report | Guardian comment | Telegraph report | THE report
Date: 2014-Feb
A report examined the experiences in the workplace of women aged over 50. It said that workplace culture made it difficult for older women to balance their careers with caring responsibilities, which contributed to low pay at the end of their working lives and poverty in retirement. The report said that: the gender pay gap for women over 50 working full-time was twice as high as for younger women; almost half of women over 50 worked part-time; and the majority worked in the public sector, where they felt at risk from budget cuts. The report called for new employment rights, including carers' leave, and for a more enlightened and flexible response from employers.
Source: Age Immaterial: Women over 50 in the workplace, Trades Union Congress
Links: Report | TUC press release
Date: 2014-Feb
A report examined the implementation of the Racial Equality and Employment Equality directives across European Union member states. It said that the provisions were now national law in all 28 European Union countries, but national authorities still needed to ensure effective protection to victims of discrimination, particularly in raising public awareness of rights and addressing underreporting of discrimination cases.
Source: Joint Report on the Application of Council Directive 2000/43/EC of 29 June 2000 Implementing the Principle of Equal Treatment between Persons Irrespective of Racial Or Ethnic Origin ( Racial Equality Directive ) and of Council Directive 2000/78/EC of 27 November 2000 Establishing a General Framework for Equal Treatment in Employment And Occupation ( Employment Equality Directive ), European Commission
Links: Report | European Commission press release
Date: 2014-Jan
A report prepared for the Northern Ireland Assembly examined gender issues. It discussed a range of gender disparities and said that women were under-represented across all major positions of political, economic, social and judicial power. The report said that certain policy decisions, such as budget reductions, appeared to have greater impact on women than men. It noted the existence of the Gender Equality Strategy, but said that updates to the strategy had not demonstrated significant change in the position of women in Northern Ireland over time.
Source: Review of Gender Issues in Northern Ireland, Research Paper 15/14, Research and Information Service, Northern Ireland Assembly
Links: Report
Date: 2014-Jan
A paper examined remuneration levels among top-level managers in the United Kingdom, comparing the pay of men with women. It said that, while no pay gap was found at figure-head (CEO) level, there was strong pay discrimination among other top-level managers, with women earning less than males at similar seniority levels. It discussed variation across different employment contexts.
Source: Philipp Geiler and Luc Renneboog, Are Female Top Managers Really Paid Less?, Tilburg University
Links: Paper
Date: 2014-Jan