7 February 2001 - The UK has the third highest rate of female
employment in Europe with a record 70% of women at work: 12.5 million
(843,000 more than there were ten years ago).
This is revealed in a government study - Trends in Female Employment - which
shows that 65% of women with dependent children are working. This ranges from 54.4%
of women with children under 5, to 75% with children between 11 and 15, and 78.2%
for those with children aged 16-18.
The employment rates for lone mothers in work are considerably lower -
averaging just 48.6%. And whereas 60.5% of married women with pre school children are
working - only 31.6% of lone mothers with children under 5 are in employment. But growth
in employment was higher among lone mothers (5.2%) than married mothers (2.4%) over the
last 3 years.
According to Employment and Women's Minister Tessa Jowell the study shows
excellent progress in women's employment over the years, with many women able
to get the work-family balance right.
Ms Jowell said:
"This is good news for women. The report shows that women continue to
be an integral part of the workforce. It is vital that we recognise
this achievement and continue building on this success - making sure
there is support for women returning to work after having a family
and helping people balance their work and family life. That is why
we are encouraging employers to introduce flexible working policies
such as job sharing and term-time working as well as traditional
part-time working hour in a way that has not always happened in the
past."
"I am especially pleased to see that lone mothers are taking
advantage of the employment opportunities that exist. In just two
years over 72,000 single mothers have got jobs through New Deal for
Lone Parents. And the introduction of the Minimum Wage, Working
Families Tax Credit and the National Childcare Strategy are all
supporting lone mothers who want to work.
"We are determined to eliminate age discrimination in employment, so
I am particularly encouraged to see that in the past three years
employment growth has been strongest among women aged between 50 and
59, an increase of 3.3 percentage points.
"No matter which region of the UK you live in, the employment rate
for women is higher than the European Union average.
"But there is still much to do - 88 per cent of women are
concentrated in service industries and in non-manual occupations
whereas 9 out of 10 workers in the manufacturing sector are men."
The report is by National Statistics in Labour Market Trends.
It also reveals that the number of women in permanent employment rose by more than
500,000 (5.2%) over the past 3 years. Most of the growth has taken place among full-time
employees. But the report also indicates that 90% of women who have dependent children do not want full-time work.
Breakdown of statistics:
Employment rates (%)
All women aged 16-59
All married/cohabiting
Married/cohabiting
without children
Married/cohabiting
with children
All single
Single without children
Single with children
|
Spring 1997
67.5
71.0
74.7
67.7
60.3
65.2
43.4
|
Spring 2000
68.9
73.0
76.2
70.1
61.7
66.8
48.6
|
You can read the full report - 'Trends in Female Employment' - in
Labour Market Trends, Volume 109 No2. For subscriptions and sales,
tel: 0870 6005522, fax: 0870 6005533. The article is based on
information from the Spring 2000 Labour Force Survey.
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