Memorandum submitted by the Equal Opportunities
Commission
SUMMARY
— EOC investigations have found a clear
correlation between sectors with high levels of gender segregation—such
as construction, where only 2% of the jobs are held by women[35]—and
skills shortages within that sector. This has massive implications
for the UK's competitiveness and productivity.
— However, occupational segregation
does not only have a negative impact on the economy, but is also
a significant cause of the gender pay gap. Women are still working
predominantly in lower paid areas, the five "Cs"—cleaning,
catering, caring, cashiering and clerical work—which is
one of the reasons why their full-time pay on average remains
17% less per hour than that of full-time men, 38% less if they
work part-time.
— Occupational segregation is a particular
issue for ethnic minority. Our Moving on up? investigation
found that 32% of all Bangladeshi women work in just five occupations.
A quarter of Pakistani and Bangladeshi women work in the wholesale
and retail sectors and 28% of Black Caribbean women work in health
and social work. The highest concentration of white British women
is 18% in health and social work.[36]
— Flexible working; affordable, high-quality
childcare; careers advice which challenges gender stereotypes;
and lifelong learning are all areas which can be improved in order
to increase the representation of women in the UK construction
industry, thereby having a beneficial impact on current and projected
skills shortages.
— There is an appetite for change amongst
both employers; and future employees. Our research shows that
more than a third of girls—36%—said they definitely
would consider non-traditional work, 44 % said they might. 12%
girls said that they were interested in working in construction—considerably
more than the low numbers currently in the construction workforce.
However, only 15% of girls and boys received any advice on work
placements in areas dominated by the other sex.
— We would like to see the 2012 Olympics
delivering a showcase project applying the recommendations of
our occupational segregation investigation and the Women and Work
Commission (WWC) report in practice to the delivery of the infrastructure
for the Games, in order to increase representation of women across
key delivery sectors.
INTRODUCTION
1. The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC)
is the statutory body for sex equality in Great Britain. Our specific
statutory duties include "to promote equality of opportunity
between women and men generally" (Sex Discrimination Act,
Section 53 (1) (b)). The EOC is a non-departmental public body,
funded through grant-in-aid, and is the leading agency working
to eliminate sex discrimination in 21st Century Britain.
2. We welcome the opportunity to contribute
to this inquiry on the UK construction industry, and will be focusing
our response on the following areas: employment practices; long-term
capacity for the delivery of large projects, such as the Olympics;
availability of investment and skills; and the use of procurement.
Given the EOC's remit these areas will be considered from a gender
angle and will explore occupational segregation and the impact
on skills shortages, as well as the barriers to the construction
industry that exist for women, such as lack of flexible training
and employment.
3. It is not only the under-representation
of women that has a negative impact on certain sectors, as the
under-representation of men in areas such as childcare is also
damaging and exacerbates skills shortages in those areas. However,
given the focus of this inquiry is the construction industry,
we will focus our comments on the barriers faced by women.
4. We have conducted a number of investigations
which are relevant to this inquiry, including Free to Choose[37]
(which explored gender barriers to jobs), Transformation of
work[38]
(this on-going investigation is exploring ways of increasing flexibility
in employment), Moving on up? [39](looking
at Black Caribbean, Pakistani and Bangladeshi women's employment)
and Britain's hidden brain drain[40]
(an investigation into flexible and part-time working), and we
will draw on these findings and policy recommendations in this
submission.
OCCUPATIONAL SEGREGATION
5. Only 2% of jobs within the construction
industry are held by women. Our investigation into occupational
segregation found that this under-representation of women is true
of a number of sectors demonstrating that women's skills are under-used
in an economy that needs the best people, with high-quality skills,
in the right place at the right time.
6. Women now make up nearly half of Britain's
workforce and the proportion is growing. We have the highest workforce
participation rate for women in Europe, with the exception of
the Scandinavian countries. Women are excelling in education at
all levels. Britain's economy and the construction industry in
particular, would therefore benefit from breaking down occupational
barriers, helping to tackle skill shortages and making better
use of individual education, skills and potential. Occupational
segregation causes employers to miss out on a huge potential pool
of labour with which to plug their skills gaps.
7. To highlight the extent of the problem,
recent statistics show that skills shortages continue to be of
concern for projects, such as the Olympics—in addition to
the shortfall of 300,000 workers for agreed construction contracts,
estimates suggest demand of 33,500 full time equivalents employees
for the Olympics and Paralympics. Widening the training and recruitment
pool to include more women could provide one obvious solution.
8. Introducing more flexible working to
enable atypical recruits with caring responsibilities has been
shown to have a positive effect on businesses. For example, an
EOC survey of employers found that 38% had experienced difficulties
in recruiting staff in the previous 18 months (Smeaton et al,
2007). Over 50% of the employers surveyed by the Association of
Graduate Recruiters said that their retention rates needed improving
(AGR, 2006). Research in 2000 found that some small businesses
saved up to £250,000 through reducing staff turnover, simply
by using flexible working policies (DfEE, 2000).
9. This demonstrates the strong business
case for increasing the representation of women in sectors, such
as construction and we have found a definite appetite for change.
70% of employers in England reported that they thought atypical
recruits could bring positive benefits to the business, and eight
in ten said a better gender mix would create a better range of
skills and talents. Yet this is not happening and construction
(along with engineering, plumbing and ICT) remains amongst the
most heavily segregated sectors of the workforce in Britain.
Ethnic minority women
10. Occupational segregation is a major
feature of ethnic minority women's employment. Our recent investigation,
Moving on up? found that 32% of all Bangladeshi women work
in just five occupations, compared to 12% of white men. A quarter
of Pakistani and Bangladeshi women work in the wholesale and retail
sectors and 28% of Black Caribbean women work in health and social
work. The highest concentration of white British women is 18%
in health and social work.
11. Our research shows that once again,
employers are missing a major opportunity. Firstly, the percentage
of young Black Caribbean, Pakistani and Bangladeshi girls obtaining
5 GCSEs at A-C level has increased in recent years to nearly the
same level as for white girls and, for Pakistani and Bangladeshis,
performance exceeds that of white boys.
12. As well as being highly qualified, EOC
research with girls at age 16 and with women employees under 35
suggests that young Black Caribbean, Pakistani and Bangladeshi
women's aspirations are close to, or in many cases exceed, those
of young white British men and women.
13. Yet despite the huge potential represented
by their qualifications and ambition, Black Caribbean, Pakistani
and Bangladeshi women are not seeing the same success in the labour
market as white women. As highlighted above, occupational segregation
is even more prevalent for these women, and as a result employers
are missing an opportunity to tackle skills shortages.
14. The strong business case for enabling
these women into the construction industry is demonstrated by
the estimate that there are 90,000 ethnic minority women out of
work in the four London boroughs covered by the Olympics site,
compared to 65,000 ethnic minority men.[41]
Based on EOC research for our Moving on up? investigation
into ethnic minority women's employment, it is likely that over
22,000 (at least 25%) of these black and ethnic minority women
who are out of work, would like to have a job[42]—therefore
these women present a major opportunity for the sector and by
enabling those who want to work to gain new skills, experience
and job opportunities, the Olympics Delivery Authority and the
Games themselves could demonstrate the importance of recruiting
and training atypical recruits as a means of plugging the skills
gap.
Government targets
15. There is obviously a strong business
case for tackling occupational segregation, but increasing the
representation of women in sectors such as construction, would
not only have an impact on skills shortages and the economy, but
would also help government to achieve a variety of targets, including:
— Closing the ethnic minority employment
gap.
— Abolishing child poverty.
— Reducing the gender pay gap.
Pay gap
16. Occupational segregation is a major
cause of the pay gap, as women tend to be concentrated in "female"
jobs that offer low wages. In general, male-dominated sectors
offer better opportunities for pay and career progression, while
"women's" work remains undervalued in social, economic
and monetary terms. Despite the fact that girls and young women
are excelling and outperforming boys in education, this is still
not translating into equal pay for many adult women.
The effect on individuals
17. However, occupational segregation does
not only have a negative impact on the economy, thwart achievement
of government targets and exacerbate the pay gap, it also denies
young people the chance to achieve personal or professional fulfillment
by doing jobs they would love and be good at.
18. Research with women working in non-traditional
sectors shows high levels of job satisfaction with women saying
that their career choice had improved the quality of their lives.
Many of these women had always wanted to do this type of work
but had been put off when young. 92% of women and men said they
would want children who are about to enter the workforce to be
able to make job choices without worrying about traditional stereotypes
of women's and men's working roles, rising to 100% in Wales.
19. The impact of segregation is particularly
acute for girls from lower socio-economic groups who may not have
access to information about a range of choices. 67% of women we
surveyed were not aware of the differences in pay rates for work
usually done by women and men and, of these, 67% of women aged
16-24 said they would have considered a wider range of career
options if they had known.
20. This shows that as well as there being
an awareness amongst employers that a diverse workforce would
have positive benefits, there is also an appetite from young people
to consider and enter non-traditional sectors. Our research showed
that 80% of girls and 55% of boys said they would or might be
interested in a non-traditional job and 76% of girls and 59% of
boys wanted to try non-traditional work before making their job
choices.
BARRIERS
Careers advice
21. Our research has shown that careers
advice, rather than raising aspirations and widening horizons,
often actually reinforces traditional choices and young people
have no information on the pay advantages of nontraditional routes.
For example, only 15% of young people in our research received
any advice or information on work experience in a non-traditional
sector. Where individuals are encouraged to find their own placements,
children from higher socio-economic groups are better placed to
find less predictable placements while other young people are
allocated or choose from placements in sectors perceived to be
suitable for their gender.
Training
22. EOC research has found that the apprenticeships
which should be at the cutting edge of skills development in these
sectors, are actually perpetuating segregation, with levels that
are equal to or greater than the segregation in the workforce.
This is because of the lack of apprenticeship places, lack of
taster courses and inflexibility in the way training is delivered
which disadvantages women with caring responsibilities. For example,
training is often delivered on the rigid full-time full-day model
which generally reflects hours in the industry, often starting
at 7.30 am. This lack of flexibility is also a factor within the
industry itself, and so continues to exclude women.
Lack of action by employers
23. There are pockets of best practice to
recruit more atypical workers across all sectors, and in all parts
of Great Britain, mainly in response to a perceived business need.
But the majority of employers are not actively engaging with schools
and 46% of apprenticeship employers that we surveyed recognised
that they were not offering enough work experience opportunities
to young people. At the same time, many women in non-traditional
sectors face isolation and a culture of machismo, bullying and
harassment, often with little or no support.
Lack of childcare
24. There are still not enough good quality,
affordable childcare places for everyone who wants one. A key
problem for working parents is the lack of fit between education
and other forms of care.
25. Also, British parents face the highest
childcare costs in Europe. This affects the type of work that
women are able to take and the hours that they are able to work,
which means that certain sectors, and also jobs at higher levels,
are often closed off to them.
Attitudes to Ethnic minority women
26. Ethnic minority women face specific
barriers which currently exclude them from certain sectors. Unfortunately
these barriers and the position of ethnic minority women are often
subsumed within broad generalisations about "ethnic minorities",
yet ethnic minority women's experience is affected by their gender
as well as their race. There are also significant differences
in the labour market position of women from different ethnic and
faith backgrounds, as well as important generational differences,
which make generalisations unhelpful.
27. Our research demonstrates that ethnic
minority women are facing discrimination as a result of their
race and sex. For example, Black Caribbean, Pakistani and Bangladeshi
women under 35 are three times more likely to be often asked about
plans for marriage and children at interview. Also one in five
working Pakistani and Bangladeshi women under 35 have heard negative
comments about their religious dress at work.
28. There is a potential mismatch between
some employer views, based on their interpretation of employing
black and Asian women of all ages, and those of younger Black
Caribbean, Pakistani and Bangladeshi women about themselves. For
example, employers seem to believe that young Pakistani and Bangladeshi
women are held back by their families, while 90% of the Pakistani
and Bangladeshi 16 year olds that we surveyed say that their families
support them in having a career as well as looking after a family.
29. In turn, this means that the fear of
discrimination then restricts the career options of these young
women. At 16, two thirds of Pakistani and Bangladeshi girls feel
there are certain jobs they can't apply for because of their ethnic
background, faith or gender.
30. Childcare is also a substantial barrier
for Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Black Caribbean women also have
different family patterns to white women. On average they have
their first child earlier than white British women. Pakistani
and Bangladeshi women are likely to have a larger number of children—the
average White british household size was 2.3 children in 2001,
whereas the figures are 4.2 and 4.7 for Pakistani and Bangladeshi
households respectively. Over a third of Black Caribbean women
are lone parents.
POLICY IMPLICATIONS
Careers advice
31. We were extremely encouraged by the
Women and Work Commission report which highlighted the importance
and need for better careers advice, and we have recently responded
to a DfES consultation on the draft standards for Information,
Advice and Guidance (IAG) for young people. We welcome the standards
and are particularly supportive of the aim of "raising aspirations,
challenging stereotypes, and ensuring that young people are aware
of all the opportunities which are open to them".
32. Within the IAG standards, we would like
to see more emphasis on non-traditional work placements. Work
experience should be integrated, as part of career guidance, particularly
in schools in poor areas and priority should be given to pupils
from disadvantaged backgrounds. Evidence shows that such placements
have a substantial influence on the career choices of young people.
33. We also have concerns about the lack
of focus on ethnic minority women in the WWC report, and believe
it should be stressed that career guidance should not exacerbate
stereotypes about ethnic minority communities. Advice and work
experience placements are extremely important for young ethnic
minority people as their parents are less likely to be able to
secure such placements in a positive environment. Unfortunately
we have found that current careers advice makes assumptions about
the expectations of young women which narrows their horizons.
34. The DfES, with EOC and National Asssociation
Of Connexions Partnerships has recently produced a good practice
guide with case study examples of initiatives to widen choices,
and funding has been made available for project work. This is
very encouraging, but the funding support is very small and we
would like to see a more strategic and resourced programme across
careers information, advice and guidance to open up choices, with
some focus on specific sectors where the under-representation
is most acute, like construction.
35. Our investigation pointed to the lack
of awareness of the higher pay rates for work and apprenticeships
in male-dominated sectors amongst young people making choices.
In a survey, 67% of young women aged 16-24 said that they would
have considered a wider range of career options if they had known
about the different pay rates. Information on pay for different
types of work and training should be made available to all young
people.
Gender equality duty
36. The Gender equality duty (GED) came
into force in April 2007 and is an important tool to tackle occupational
segregation, throughout education and training, and also through
employment practices by procurement policy. This duty requires
public authorities, including government departments, to demonstrate
that they are promoting equality for women and men, girls and
boys, and that they are eliminating sexual discrimination and
harassment. This is the general duty. There are also specific
duties, which include the need to set specific gender equality
objectives and to prepare and publish a Gender equality scheme
through consultation with employees, service users and other stakeholders.
Progress must be reported on annually and the scheme must be reviewed
and revised every three years.
37. The specific duties are an opportunity.
Schools and colleges collate data on boys and girls already. What
the duties will do is ensure they use that data intelligently
to inform the decisions they make. They will open up new ways
for schools to deliver a quality education that supports young
people in making sound and informed transitions into the workplace.
This can be delivered as part of their core activities and not
as an additional requirement. It will enable institutions to ensure
that careers advice and guidance are implemented in ways that
secure the best outcomes for all young people.
Positive action
38. It is also important to note that the
Sex Discrimination Act (SDA) allows positive action for women
(or men), to fit them for particular work, or encourage them to
take advantage of opportunities for doing that work, where the
numbers of women in that sector were comparatively small at any
time during the preceding 12 months. This can include single-sex
training. For more information on positive action, please see
the EOC website, which can be found at www.eoc.org.uk. The Women
into Work Pathways initiative is an excellent example of a government-funded
programme designed to challenge segregation in sectors, including
construction, where women are under-represented. We would like
to see this programme rolled out across the Skills for Business
network.
Training
39. Vocational training schemes, whether
apprenticeships or beyond, should be designed with the needs of
atypical trainees in mind. This would mean tasters for young and
adult apprenticeships; that young people and adult women trainees
have more support to find adequate work placements, possibly through
small employers sharing trainees and by project-based training;
and there being local support networks for atypical trainees on
training and apprenticeship schemes.
40. We welcome the positive response from
DfES and the LSC to our investigation findings, and their commitment
to work on this agenda. In particular, the DfES are developing
a strategy for apprenticeships on equality and diversity and the
Apprenticeship Ambassadors Network has created an equality and
diversity group that are developing a programme of action. We
are particularly pleased that the pilot adult apprenticeship programme
has been extended and will have a reducing gender segregation
focus. EOC is working to support these various initiatives and
we very much hope to see some positive outcomes in the form of
reducing the gender gap on apprenticeships in male-dominated sectors,
including construction. Monitoring progress and assessing where
additional support is needed should be a priority across government.
Flexibility in training and employment
41. We would like to see more flexibility
in both training and employment. Extending the right to request
to all employees would help a wider range of people, especially
women, to enter and/or remain in work—even in industries
and occupations that have traditionally been closed to them, reducing
their segregated nature and helping employers alleviate their
skills shortages. Crucially, this change will also tackle one
of the major causes of the gender pay gap.
Employers and unions
42. We would like to see business leaders
and major employers working with unions, LSCs and Sector Skills
Councils to support and promote better, more flexible employer
practices that would help and encourage more women to enter male-dominated
sectors.
43. The reduction of occupational segregation,
not just as an equality issue but also as a business and productivity
issue, should be promoted amongst employers in the sector, CBI,
TUC and their learning and skills partners. Employers should be
encouraged to: train, recruit, and retain women in non-traditional
sectors; re-skill women employees—Train to Gain provides
the opportunity for a new national focus on in-house training
of women in non-traditional skills; and offer at least one non-traditional
work experience placement.
Childcare
44. The national childcare strategy is improving
the quality and availability of childcare, and reducing the extent
to which lack of childcare is identified as a barrier to work
for workless parents—progress needs to be sustained.
45. Childcare must be flexible, culturally
appropriate and affordable in order to allow women within families
from all communities the opportunity to enter non-traditional
workplaces, such as construction.
May 2007
35 http://www.eco.org.uk/pdk/occseg_oneyear_progress.pdf Back
36
http://www.eoc.org.uk/PDF/BME_GFI_early_findings_England.pdf Back
37
http://www.eoc.org.uk/PDF/occseg_finalrep_england.pdf Back
38
http://www.eoc.org.uk/PDF/working_outside_box.pdf Back
39
http://www.eoc.org.uk/PDF/bme_final_report2007.pdf Back
40
http://www.eoc.org.uk/PDF/brain_drain_final_report.pdf Back
41
Nahid Majid's paper to the Ethnic minority employment task force. Back
42
Equal opportunities Commission (2006) Moving on up? Manchester
EOC. Back
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