Blog
Equal Pay Day sharpens the focus on pay discrimination
Recent data from the Office for National Statistics revealed that Scotland’s gender pay gap had narrowed ever so slightly from 14% to 13%. We aren’t celebrating though because it still represents a lifetime of inequality for working women.
The Living Wage can loosen the grip of women’s poverty
Living Wage Week is an opportunity to recognise the importance of the living wage in lifting women out of poverty and enabling fair work for women.
Close the Gap launches innovative new resource for businesses on domestic abuse
New Close the Gap research finds flexible working regulations aren't making work more flexible for women
In 2010, the UK Government extended the right to request flexible working regulations to all employees. Close the Gap’s new research, Flexible Working for All?, looks at the availability and uptake of flexible working in Scotland between 2010 and 2015 to identify whether this regulatory change has resulted in increased flexible working across Scotland’s labour market.
Reading roundup - May/June
What a busy few months we’ve had! We supported the
#KidsCantWait campaign and called for early implementation of the family income
supplement, our Still Not Visible research was
supported by MSPs, and our Policy Manager, Lindsey Millen graced the pages of
Third Force News to school us all on the gender pay gap. Don’t worry if, like us, time has run away from you; we’ve
curated a selection of the essential reading on women and the labour market from
the last two months.
Call for participants: Research on managing paid work with caring roles
Would you be interested in taking part in research which will expand the evidence base on the gender pay gap in Scotland?
Close the Gap’s new research finds three-quarters of BME women have experienced racism, discrimination and bias at work
January's news roundup
January has been a busy month for all of us at Close the Gap: we published the ultimate guide to the gender pay gap, launched our Equally Safe at Work employer accreditation programme, and opened recruitment for new trustees. If, like us, you’ve earned a break – grab a hot drink while we fill you in on all things women and work.
We are recruiting new trustees!
Are you committed to women’s labour market equality? Do you have the ability to think strategically and creatively? We are looking to add to our fantastic board of trustees.
Launch of innovative new employer accreditation, Equally Safe at Work
We are delighted to be launching Equally Safe at Work, an innovative and world-leading employer accreditation programme that will enable local government employers to advance gender equality and prevent violence against women. This coincides with a debate in Scottish Parliament happening later today at 5:00PM, after Gail Ross MSP lodged a motion welcoming the programme’s launch.
Everything you wanted to know about the gender pay gap
Writing or talking about the gender pay gap can be a tricky business. Whether it’s a piece in a national newspaper, or an informal (heated?) chat at your local coffee shop, discussions of the gender pay gap can cover a huge amount of ground, referencing cold, hard data, social norms and conventions, deeply-held opinions and everything in between. Is it really the gender pay gap you’re talking about, or is it unequal pay? How are these different, and do they interact? Why do different reports in the media use different figures for the pay gap? Is the pay gap even a thing anymore? (Spoiler alert: YES)
EVENT: Still Not Visible: BME Women’s Experiences of Employment in Scotland research launch
Close the Gap is launching a new report, Still Not Visible: Black and Minority Ethnic Women’s Experiences of Employment in Scotland. The research explores BME women’s employment experiences including recruitment, workplace culture, training and childcare.
Where are disabled women in the Scottish Government’s Disability Employment Plan?
To further their ambition of at least halving the disability employment gap in Scotland, the Scottish Government have published an employment action plan for disabled people. The Plan proposes actions for supporting disabled people into employment, supporting employers to recruit and retain disabled people and improving the employment experience.
November monthly reading roundup
This month has seen Women’s labour market equality in the spotlight; November 10th was the UK’s Equal Pay Day, highlighting the gender pay gap and marking the day that women effectively stop earning compared to their male counterparts. Women’s state pension age rose to match that of men, prompting concerns over the welfare of older women.The 16 days of activism against Gender Based Violence have begun; this year’s theme is Ending Gender-Based Violence in the World of Work which has built on the success of campaigns such as #MeToo in highlighting the scale of sexual harassment and assault at work. After such a busy month, you deserve a cup of tea while we catch you up on all things women and work.
16 days of activism
The 25th of November marks the first day of the 16 Days of Activism for the elimination of violence against women and girls, an international campaign started in 1991 by the Center for Women’s Global Leadership. The campaign aims to raise awareness about violence against women as an enduring social problem that undermines communities and workplaces.
It's Equal Pay Day, again.
The nights are drawing in, the sound of fireworks is (thankfully) fading, and the heating has been cranked up. Yes, it’s that time of year again: it’s Equal Pay Day.
October monthly reading roundup
This month saw the UK’s gender pay gap drop so slightly that you’d be forgiven for not even noticing, low paid women walking out of their workplaces for two days demanding an end to their decade long equal pay dispute and us, playing with this majestic owl.
Slight drop in Scotland’s gender pay gap but meaningful change still out of reach for women
New data from the UK Office for National Statistics shows that there has been a very slight narrowing of Scotland’s gender pay gap from 15% to 14%. There is an across the board 1% narrowing when also looking at the experiences of women working full-time and those working part-time. Women working full-time earn 10.2% less than their male counterparts, while part-time women earn on average 29.7% less than men working full-time illustrating the systemic undervaluation of "women's work" which continues to be concentrated in part-time, low-paid jobs.
The perennial problem of equal pay
Ten years ago, Close the Gap held an event, with support from Unison and the TUC, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the equal pay strikes which eventually led to the passing of the Equal Pay Act in 1970. We were lucky to have two of the Ford Dagenham sewing machinists speak about their experiences of the strikes, and reflect on the significance of their actions. We also paid homage to Agnes McLean who led the Scottish fight for equal pay, first at Rolls Royce Hillington in 1943, and later in a series of strikes across the West of Scotland in 1968. The right to equal pay for equal work is fundamental to women’s labour market equality but, almost 50 years on, we’re still very far from that right being realised.
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