Women At Work: Gendered Experience and the Changing World of Work

Listen to the event audio here.

Join us to discuss the challenges that face women in the world of work and what policies are required to address these and ensure greater gender equality in the workplace.

Speakers:

Stella Creasy MP (Walthamstow)

Kate Green MP (former shadow women and equalities minister)

Baroness Margaret Prosser (former deputy general secretary, Transport & General Workers Union)

Chair: Kate Dearden (research and campaigns officer, Community)

Work is changing rapidly through innovation and technological change but women are still being left behind. Discussions of the changing nature and form of work often ignore or diminish the gendered aspect of the individual’s experience. Women remain consistently overrepresented in low-paid work as well as in part-time and temporary employment. Recent reporting suggests that 78 per cent of companies still pay men more than women. If women are paid equally and given greater opportunities to participate in the economy, the benefits would extend beyond individuals to society and the economy as a whole. Estimates put the economic cost of gender discrimination at £123bn of lost output per annum – addressing these issues is smart economics.

Companies, government and unions must work together to ensure that, as the world of work changes, steps are taken to eradicate the gender pay gap, eliminate gender discrimination at work, and to ensure women are empowered to enter and succeed in the new economy. The changing world of work presents risks, but also provides an opportunity for policy makers to deliver the transformative change needed to end gendered disparities in the workplace.