This section is for both men and women who are concerned about discrimination in the workplace because of their gender. Since the Equal Pay Act 1970, the gap between average hourly pay for men and women has decreased enormously. However, there is still a difference, with women earning on average 83% of the hourly rate paid to men (Office for National Statistics, 2007). Women are also more likely to take disproportionate amounts of unpaid work activities, for example taking on more family commitments, and are more likely to work part time to accommodate these responsibilities. These factors affect both lifetime earnings and promotion rates for women. Gender discrimination occurs in other ways in the workplace as well, against both genders. Gender segregation of job roles has been a significant problem in the past, although there has been positive change in recent years with occupations in traditionally male areas such as business and medicine now reflecting the general population. However, there are still many occupational areas where one gender is in the majority, for example women make up 80% of the graduates in occupations allied to health and 90% of nurses are female. Similarly, there are up to three times as many male graduates in computer science than women, and up to six times as many undertaking engineering courses. (Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), 2006) Discrimination can be direct, e.g. refusing to hire a man to work as a nurse, or indirect, e.g. having a height requirement for employment which is not actually necessary for the job. Both men and women are more likely to encounter indirect discrimination. However, both forms are covered by existing legislation. In recent years, there has been considerable focus on the disadvantages faced by women in the workplace and this will inevitably be reflected in the information provided here. However, when men want to enter areas of employment that have traditionally been the preserve of women, they may also face some levels of prejudice or discrimination. Men in this situation have fewer sources of support to turn to than women but should nevertheless resist unfair treatment when they encounter it and can use some of the same strategies as those suggested here for women.
|
