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Network Journal 2008 Issue 2 March/April |
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Gender pay gap
A new TUC report shows that women are far more likely to be poor than men, writes equalities officer Ruth Cross.
This is because of the gender pay gap - that is the difference between men's and women's earnings. Women working full-time earn, on average, 83 pence for every one pound earned by a man working full-time.
Women working part-time earn just 65 pence for every pound earned by a man working full-time.
There are three main reasons why women earn less than men:
- Women are far more likely to have to take unpaid time off work to care for their children and other family members when they are ill. This means that over the course of their working lives women earn less than men.
- Women traditionally work in sectors of the economy where pay is lower such as catering, cleaning and clerical jobs. Part-time jobs tend to be lower paid in this country and women make up the majority of part-time workers.
- Women are sometimes paid less even when they do the same job as a man because their work is seen as less important or valuable by employers.
The TUC's research shows that the gender pay gap affects women and their families. If women are stuck in low paid jobs, this makes it even harder to tackle child poverty. More at: www.tuc.org.uk
For more information on equality matters contact Ruth Cross or Jo Bird on 0161 224 2804 or email: equalities@usdaw.org.uk
www.usdaw.org.uk/equality
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