HR Industry News

Gender equality still generations away

— 27 July 2007 —

The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) has warned that gender equality is still generations away unless urgent action is taken.

Over the next 10 years, action is needed across all aspect of life to close stubborn gender gaps in the EOC’s final report before it is absorbed into the Commission for Equality and Human Rights (CEHR) later this year.

The report, entitled ‘Completing the Revolution’, highlights a wide range of gender gaps and warns that at the current rate of progress change will be painfully slow.

For example, the power gap for women in Parliament will take almost 200 years to close and it will take up to 65 years to have a more equitable balance of women at the top of FTSE 100 companies.

It also estimates that the pensions gap will take 45 years to equalise and it will be more than 20 years before men and women enjoy equal pay in both full and part-time work.

Commenting on the findings of the report, EOC chair Jenny Watson said a country which channels women into low paid work, fails to adequately support families and forces people who want to work flexibly to trade down in jobs, will pay a high price in terms of child poverty, family breakdown and low productivity.

This is a challenge that Gordon Brown's new government urgently needs to address, she added.

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