Are men a hard hat to follow?
Occupational segregation by sex is an enduring aspect of the UK labour market according to a new study by the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC), out this week. Building and construction, engineering and plumbing remain male bastions despite making desperate calls for female recruits to boost the number of entrants. The EOC says its year-long investigation concludes that recruiting more women in non-traditional occupations is the key to ending severe shortages of skilled workers in some parts of the labour market, but many industries have failed to make any headway. The report – Plugging Britain’s skills gap: challenging gender segregation in training and work – identifies key barriers to women entering non-traditional occupations. Julie Mellor, chair of the EOC, says: “Skills shortages also have a significant impact on employers – even high-profile projects, such as Heathrow’s Terminal 5, are having problems finding enough skilled workers. In the short term, the government’s relaunc
Occupational segregation by sex is an enduring aspect of the UK labour market according to a new study by the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC), out this week. Building and construction, engineering and plumbing remain male bastions despite making desperate calls for female recruits to boost the number of entrants. The EOC says its year-long investigation concludes that recruiting more women in non-traditional occupations is the key to ending severe shortages of skilled workers in some parts of the labour market, but many industries have failed to make any headway. The report – Plugging Britain’s skills gap: challenging gender segregation in training and work – identifies key barriers to women entering non-traditional occupations. Julie Mellor, chair of the EOC, says: “Skills shortages also have a significant impact on employers – even high-profile projects, such as Heathrow’s Terminal 5, are having problems finding enough skilled workers. In the short term, the government’s relaunc
