Britain leads in gender pay gap in Europe, says study |
|
|
Published
:
Mon, 27 Feb 2006 19:50
|
LONDON: The gap in salaries earned by men and women costs a huge 23 billion pounds to the British economy in lost productivity and wasted talent, according to findings contained in a government-sponsored study.
The commission feels that its study shows the pay gap is not only bad for women, but also bad for Britain as a whole. The Women and Work Commission, which conducted the study at the instance of the government, is expected to come out with suggestions on measures to be initiated to allow women to get a fairer deal in workplaces. Saying that women in full-time work were earning 13 per cent less than men, and those in part-time work 38 per cent less, the commission described the gender pay gap as worst in Britain than any other country in Europe. It has suggested a change of culture in schools and workplaces to counter the problem.
The commission has identified the main problems as job segregation between the sexes, a failure to promote part-timers to senior posts and narrow career avenues for girls even when they beat boys academically.
The commission's two members, Karrby Carberry, assistant general secretary of TUC, and John Cridland, deputy director general of the Confederation of British Industry, said in a joint statement that the continued division of jobs into men's work and women's work is "holding back our economy at a time when the challenge from abroad means we need to be operating at peak levels of performance".
The commission has come out with 40 recommendations, major among them being encouraging more women into male-dominated industries such as computers and construction, and getting them away from the "five Cs" - catering, cleaning, cashiering, clerical work and caring.
The commission says there must be a major effort to help women returning to work part-time after their maternity leave to get senior positions and to update their skills and changing careers.
Trade unions criticised the commission for not recommending compulsory pay reviews to ensure that women do not get lesser salaries than men. Amicus general secretary Derek Simpson went to the extent of saying the report deliberately missed the point.
The commission was set up by prime minister Tony Blair in 2004 to study women’s' experiences in the workplace and barriers affecting their career prospects.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Print this Story
Asymmetry in pay-packet 