Gender Inequalities

1
Gender Inequalities
2
Changes in Society

• Average age when married increased 7 years from
  1971-2001 (men 35, women 32)
• Increasing divorce rate (1971 296,000 divorced
  women 2001 2 million)
• Number of lone parent households increased
  rapidly (due to babies born outside marriage
  rather than divorce)

3
Changes In Society

• Proportion of women in the workforce grew from
  29 in1900 to 46 in 2000 (increase of 5 to 13
  million)
• Women make increasingly important contribution to
  the income of families with children

4
Evidence of Wealth Inequalities

• Women are more likely to be poor than men
• Women earn, on average, less than men. In 2004,
  men in full-time jobs had average earnings of
  24,236. The average for women was 24 less at
  18,531. Difference was a large 35 in London.

5
Evidence of Wealth Inequalities

• Elderly women are more likely to live in poverty
  than men. There are 3 times as many single
  female pensioners than there are male and more
  live on lower incomes. Female pensioners are
  more likely to rely on means-tested benefits

6
Evidence of Wealth Inequalities

• Even when men and women enter the same occupation
  with the same qualifications, there is a salary
  gap 23 for medical practitioners, 21 for
  legal professionals and 15 for accountants

7
Reasons for Inequalities

• Women work in lower paid sectors of the economy
• Nearly 2/3 of women are employed in 12
  occupations including the 5 Cs caring,
  cashiering, catering, cleaning and clerical
  occupations

8
Attitudes?
9
Reasons for Inequalities

• Discrimination or Glass Ceiling effect in
  occupations where women are over-represented, men
  tend to have the higher managerial positions (82
  of teachers in primary schools are women but
  nearly half of primary head teachers are men).

10
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11
Reasons for Inequalities

• Females entering job market have higher
  qualifications than males but are more likely to
  take career breaks or work part-time
• Only one mother in ten remains in full-time
  continuous work following the birth of her first
  child
• Women have traditional role as carer (young old
  members of family)

12
Reasons for Inequalities

• Nine out of ten lone parents are lone mothers.
  They are less likely to be in full-time
  employment, more likely to be living in poverty
  and less likely to have formal qualifications
• UK 55.5 of lone parents are in work
• Sweden 70
• France 82

13
Solutions?
14
Solutions?

• Equal Pay Act 1970. Gap in earnings is 24 -
  some of this is attributable to men and women
  doing different work but evidence suggests that
  women are still being paid less for the same work
  in many areas

15
Solutions?

• European law extended the equal
• pay act to include benefits
• Legislation passed in 2003 extended the time
  limits for bringing cases and for which arrears
  payments can be made this has had a significant
  impact on the NHS. (In 2006, Scottish Local
  Authorities faced claims amounting to 700
  million)

16
Solutions?

• Sex Discrimination Act 1975
• Equal Opportunities Commission (Now merged with
  CRE and called Human Rights Commission - Website)
  set up in 1976 to promote equal opportunities for
  men women. 2004/05 EOC received nearly 24,000
  Helpline calls concerning pregnancy maternity,
  equal pay, work-life balance, recruitment and
  selection and sexual harassment

17
Solutions?

• Child Support Agency introduced in 1993 to try to
  reduce the cost to the government of paying
  benefits. CSA controversial and government
  currently looking at replacement system.
• Other policies include New Deal, Working Tax
  Credit, Child Tax Credit, National Minimum Wage,
  Welfare Benefits

18
Solutions?

• The number of women starting their own companies
  is on the increase. There are now 46 women for
  every 100 men starting their own enterprises and
  the gap narrows every year. Taking risks in
  order to work flexibly undermines any argument
  that women fail to secure promotions because they
  lack drive or ambition

Michelle Mone, Ultimo
19
Health Inequalities Mortality Rates

• Life expectancy in the UK is women 81 men 76

Use pages 82 83 to explain the reasons for this
20
Health Inequalities Morbidity Rates

• Women suffer more ill health during their lives.
  For example 78 of prescriptions are issued to
  women
• Use pages 82 83 to explain the reasons
• for this

21

• Gender inequalities continue to exist in the UK.
  Discuss. (15)
• Assess the effectiveness of government policy in
  dealing with either gender or race
  inequalities. (15)