Blog
Flexible Working Week
This week is ‘Flexible working week’ in the UK but many businesses across Scotland are still missing out on the benefits that flexibility can bring to their organisations.
A lack of flexible working is one of the key causes of the gender pay gap. Women are more likely to have caring responsibilities for children, sick relatives, disabled people, or older people, and therefore have to secure flexible working in order to balance work with family and caring responsibilities. The problem is that quality part-time and flexible working is difficult to find, particularly at senior levels. As a result, many women are working below their skill level in undervalued, low-paid jobs in which part-time work predominates. Part-time workers are also often perceived as less committed, less ambitious, and less productive than their colleagues who work full-time. This lack of visible role models working flexibly in senior jobs means that many people are reluctant to breach the subject of flexible working with their employer for fear of it damaging their career. However, many women are concerned of what will happen to their career path if they work part-time, or ask to work flexibly, because of a lack of visibility of role models at senior levels doing this.
More often than not, jobs are advertised without mentioning that flexible working may be available. This acts as a barrier to women applying, and therefore makes it more difficult for those women who are trying to progress and those who want to work in male-dominated sectors where flexible working is less likely to be available. Recent research published by Timewise found that only 6% of job adverts offered flexible working with this percentage decreasing, as salary increases, to only 2% for senior positions. The research also found that almost half of employees now want flexibility in their work life, but 42% of respondents were concerned that asking for flexibility would damage their career prospects.
Flexible working not only benefits employees but also businesses. BT has implemented a range of flexible working arrangements since the 1990s and has found a 54% improvement in productivity, a 63% reduction in absenteeism, and a retention rate of 99% for staff returning from maternity leave. BT also reported a rise in staff satisfaction and motivation, and savings on recruitment and training costs.
Close the Gap has developed an online tool to enable smaller employers to enable smaller employers to assess their employment policies and practice in areas such as flexible working. Find out more about how your business can benefit from flexible working by the Think Business Think Equality test.
August Newsround
Here we round up all the news about women in the labour market, and all things related. This month’s stories cover older women in the workplace, the university gender gap, the Think Business Think Equality launch and more.
The National
Scotland's invisible women: urgent action sought over gender gap in the workplace
App launched to help small businesses bridge the gender pay gap
The Guardian
Sexism in publishing: 'My novel wasn’t the problem, it was me, Catherine'
Mind the gender pay gap in Western Australia – women are paid $484 less
The gender pay gap is a scandal. David Cameron must act on his pledge to end it.
What does the university gender gap mean for the future of our society?
The Herald
Gender pay gap leaves women managers "working for free"
The Independent
The Telegraph
We should move quickly to eliminate the gender pay gap once and for all
International
How the pay gap between men and women starts small and gets so much bigger
How tech start-ups are closing the gender gap
Think Business, Think Equality launch at The Lighthouse
Last Friday we launched our Think Business, Think Equality tool and accompanying short films at The Lighthouse in Glasgow. The free, online tool allows small and medium businesses to self-assess their business practice by taking one or more of five short tests based on specific themes: flexible working, workplace culture, pay and reward, progression and promotion, and the different jobs that women and men tend to do. On completion of each test you receive a report based on your answers, and a personalised action plan for your business which details simple changes you can make to your workplace practice that are good for your people and for your business as a whole. You can also access more detailed information on each topic with free downloadable guidance, allowing you to tailor your approach as much as you like.
We were very proud to unveil our four short animations, produced by Media Co-op, which bring to life the business benefits of gender equality, each in a punchy 30 seconds. Each film centres on a different theme, from innovation to valuing your people, and we hope these will grab the attention of people working in small and medium businesses, and pique their interest in the tool.
The event was chaired by Anne Meikle from Women’s Enterprise Scotland, and we heard from our own Anna Ritchie Allan on the business benefits of gender equality, and Amanda Turner gave a step by step walk through of one of the tool’s tests. We were also delighted to have Patrick Byrne, CEO of Pursuit Marketing, and Pursuit’s Operations Director Lorraine Gray, in attendance to give a business’ perspective on the tool. Event attendees included SME owners, business agency representatives and equalities specialists; it was a great chance to hear different perspectives, and there was a very productive networking session afterwards.
The tool is available online at www.thinkbusinessthinkequality.org.uk, and you can also download the free app for iOS, Android or Windows.
EVENTS: SCOTLAND AND UK WIDE
In this post you will find a selection of up and coming events and programmes relating to gender equality and women's participation in the labour market.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Engender
Gender Matters: Equality and Inclusion Through Care Conference
Tuesday 13th October 10am - 4pm
The Lighthouse, Glasgow
FREE
Over the past two years, Engender has been working with Professor Kirstein Rummery to examine how care policy could be used to achieve gender equality, and what Scotland could learn from care policies around the world.
This conference will examine issues such as childcare and long-term care, and how these impact on gender equality, with input from expert speakers.
____________________________________________________________________
Commission on local tax reform
Help shape the future of local tax - Workshop with Women's Groups
September 7, 2015, 13.00 – 16.00
Glasgow Caledonian University
The Commission on local tax reform wants to hear from women about what they think might be a fairer way to raise the £2 billion presently collected from council tax in Scotland.
The event will last around 2.5 hours and will involve you taking part in an interactive discussion. Members the Commission will also attend to hear your views first hand. Refreshments will be provided.
__________________________________________________________________
EQUATE SCOTLAND
Take Action To Recruit Female Apprentices
11 September 2015- 09.30
FREE
Venue: Carnegie Conference Centre, Halbeath Rd, Dunfermline, Fife, KY11 8DY
Equate Scotland and Fife College are holding a free half-day seminar to support employers and training providers to recruit and retain female talent in engineering and construction, through apprenticeship pathways.
The session aims to confirm the importance of positive action and looks at strategies to encourage a wider pool of young people, in particular girls and women, to consider engineering apprenticeships. The session is aimed at engineering employers, training providers and those responsible for recruiting, training and managing apprentices.
Find out more about this event or Book for this event
Career Enhancement Programme
30 September 2015 - 10:00
FREE
Edinburgh
Host - Equate Scotland
A free three day course designed for progressing women working in engineering and advanced manufacturing, taking place over three days between September and December this Autumn.
Find out more about the programme, or book for this event
________________________________________________________________
WISE - Women in Science and Engineering
A wide range of events across the UK from small workshops through training courses to major conferences. See more information
Think Business, Think Equality launch event
Close the Gap is launching its Think Business, Think Equality online self-assessment tool which is designed specifically for small and medium businesses and organisations.
The free online tool enables employers to self-assess their employment practice, and provides tailored advice and guidance on the ways in which their business can benefit from gender diversity.
Delivering workplace equality makes good business sense. Having fair and flexible working practices allows you to attract and retain the best talent, reduce recruitment and training costs, and it makes your business more productive, more innovative, and more profitable.
The new online tool will be launched in Glasgow along with our new Think Business, Think Equality promotional films. You will also be able to hear from a business owner who has used the Think Business, Think Equality tool.
The launch event will take place on 28th August 2015 from 4.00pm - 5.30pm at The Lighthouse, Mitchell Lane, Glasgow, G1 3NU. Wine and canapes will be available.
If you would like to attend, register here.
If you would like more information on the event or the toolkit, please get in touch at info@closethegap.org.uk
RSS