Today the government published its long overdue response to the Women and Equalities Select Committee report on pregnancy and maternity discrimination. Given that the EHRC estimate that some 54,000 women are forced out of their jobs per year due to pregnancy discrimination, and the Women and Equalities Select Committee published their report in August 2016,…
Imagine that you’re applying for a mystery job and you’re told that all female applicants must adhere to the following dress code: Heel height normally a minimum of 2 inches and maximum of 4 inches, unless otherwise agreed by the client company. Make-up worn at all times and regularly re-applied, with a minimum of: Light…
Today sees the launch of a new campaign for Sex and Relationships Education (SRE), set up by the End Violence Against Women coalition and the Everyday Sexism project, and supported by the TUC. The SREnow campaign calls for SRE to be made compulsory in all schools. You would be forgiven for assuming that in 2016…
So who do you trust to come up with an informed and considered position on how the legislative framework that covers abortion could be improved: the Daily Mail or the Royal College of Midwives, a union representing some 46,000 midwives who have dedicated their working lives to supporting women’s choices in pregnancy? I don’t need…
There are so many problems with the story of Nicola Thorp, the London receptionist who was sent home by her agency, Portico, without pay because she refused to wear high heels, it’s hard to know where to begin. From a health and safety perspective, heels are bad for feet, joints and back. Sorry to be the…
Today the EHRC published its long awaited report and recommendations on pregnancy discrimination. This follows on from last year’s interim report which found that 54,000 women per year are forced out of their jobs due to pregnancy discrimination. The final report leads with the astounding headline that 77%, the equivalent of 390,000 women, experience negative…
Just last week, the Chancellor proudly announced in the Budget that the government was winning on the gender pay gap. He said (pretty much cutting and pasting from previous speeches): “Inequality is down; and the gender pay gap has never been smaller.” But today we are told by the Women and Equalities Select Committee, led…
The Chancellor’s announcement on academies in today’s budget represents, among other things, a significant attack on national pay bargaining in a sector that is overwhelmingly made up of women workers. The imposition of academy status on schools up and down the country matters to all of us. It matters to kids. It matters to parents. It…
This week a Bristol company hit the headlines for its plan to implement a “period policy”. Most commentators’ reactions to this news could be summarised roughly as “Brilliant. How can I get a job there?” It’s true that you’d be hard pressed to find a woman who hasn’t at some point struggled into work in pain,…
It’s not often the TUC talks about tampons but I feel compelled to say a few words about today’s announcement that funds raised via the “tampon tax” will be spent on women’s charities. This morning I wrote about how spending cuts are decimating the Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) charity sector. Let’s be clear,…