MPs slam lack of help for women in workplace A
Page 36
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
REPORT BY an influential group of 1VIT's has slammed several sectors of the UK economy, including transport and logistics, for not doing enough to support and represent women in the workplace.
The Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) Committee inquiry into Women in the Workplace also wants the government to introduce regulations, under the Equality Act 2010, requiring large private sector employers to undertake equal pay audits and publish details of non-compliant businesses.
The report calls for targets to be set to encourage women into apprenticeship sectors where they are under-represented. Adrian Bailey ATP, chairman of the BIS committee, said: "It's four decades since the Equal Pay Act and we still do not have full workplace equality. We cannot wait another 40 years."
Evidence submitted to the inquiry by the Office for National Statistics said the gender pay gap in 2012 was 9.6% (down from 10.5% in 2011). "Comprising more than half the population, significant public funds are invested in women. Ensuring they reach their full potential is therefore as much an economic argument as one about equality," Bailey added.
The report said businesses should not view more stringent regulation as red tape, stating that such recommendations would be a necessary part of making businesses and organisations more economically sustainable.