Women must wait 73 years for job equality
Representation of female bosses in the FTSE 100 has increased slightly – to 11 per cent – since last year, the newly launched “Sex and Power” report from the Human Rights Commission revealed yesterday.
However, women will still be “waiting in the wings” for an estimated 73 years to achieve equal status to their male counterparts. Despite a small increase, the index indicates fewer women hold top posts in almost half of the measured categories, including parliament and public service positions.
In a further five categories the number of women has remained static since 2007’s index, prompting the commission to liken women’s progress to a “snail’s pace”.
A spokesperson for the commission said: “We always speak of a glass ceiling. Our figures reveal in some cases that it appears to be made from reinforced concrete.”
The “Sex and Power” paper is part of the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s annual report. This is their first study specifically relating to women in top positions of power and influence across both public and private sectors. The report suggests in achieving equal representation among Britain’s 31,000 top power positions, around 5,600 women need to rise through the ranks.
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Janet Pippin (Valero): “It’s a lot harder for females to get into the top jobs, since bosses tend to be more male-orientated, at least in the oil business where I work. I don’t know of any major sexual discrimination issues as such, but it’s certainly true that the pay isn’t as good for women.”
Sagar Passir (Lloyds TSB): “Women now get selected before men for interviews, so actually I’m a bit jealous. Obviously, they get selected because they’ve got skills, not just because of their looks, but it’s still not good for me. Although ,I think women may be getting paid less than men.”
Natalie Harden (Reed Finance): “It depends on the industry and the mentality of the people. Women don’t find it harder to get top positions, but they do need to prove themselves more. The whole career/family thing is also a problem. Some old school companies worry that women will go off to have babies.”