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Unequal Wales: the evidence
Victoria Winckler
Bevan Foundation
About the Bevan Foundation
Registered charity
Research, discussions and debates, articles, pamphlets, magazines
Concern with social justice
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About the Review of evidence
Commissioned by EHRC - Jan 2008
Brief was to ‘undertake a review of recent research evidence on equality issues in Wales’.
Completed October 2008 - published March 2009
What it covered
Each equality strand plus Welsh language
Only research specific to Wales. Published between 2000 and Oct.
2008. Not guaranteed to be comprehensive. Broad definition of research.
Employment themes Economic activity Unemployment Self employment Pay Occupational segregation Flexible working Fair treatment at work Trade union membership
Economic Activity - race
Ethnic minorities less likely to be economically active than White groups.
variation between ethnic groups, Variation between women and men, Variation between younger / older people. Particularly low rates amongst refugees.
Economic activity - gender
Women less likely to be economically active than men:
Gap widest for ages 25 - 39 Women with dependent children much less likely
to work than men with dependent children Maternity leave patterns very similar to England Powerful evidence on impact of caring for children
and other relatives on women’s employment
Economic activity - disability Huge and widening gap between disabled and
non-disabled people. NB gap particularly large in Wales. Variation according to disability
- people with mental health conditions have lowest activity rates
Disabled people with qualifications more likely to be employed than those without qualifications
Economic activity - age
Older people (50+) less likely to be active than younger people.
NB particularly low rate for older people in Wales.
Economic activity - sexual orientation and religion
Very little evidence LGB activity rate appears little different Muslims have low rate, mainly because of
of very low participation of Muslim women.
Unemployment Higher rates amongst: ethnic minority groups than Whites disabled people than non-disabled younger people than older people
Lower rates amongst women - and different experiences
Data on sexual orientation and religion unreliable / old
Self-employment
Higher amongst: Ethnic minority groups than White groups. disabled people than non-disabled (?) older people than younger people Muslims than other religions. LGB than whole population. Much lower amongst women than men.
Pay
Strong evidence of pay gaps for: Migrant vs Welsh workers Women vs men Disabled vs non-disabled Younger & older workers vs middle aged Little or no evidence on sexual orientation
and religion
Pay (cont.)
Gender pay gap: Greatest in private sector, at top of pay
scale, where no collective bargaining Some evidence that Wales not performing
well on action on gender pay gap Though positive evaluation of close gap
campaign
Segregation Marked segregation by occupation and
industry for: Ethnic minority groups - further complicated
by gender & age Women - sector, industry, occupation and
apprenticeships Disabled people
Limited evidence for others
Flexible working
Part time working: More women than men work PT mainly because
of care responsibilities More disabled people than non-disabled people
work PT More older people than younger people work PT More white people than ethnic minority groups
work PT
Flexible working
Evidence on other forms of flexible working mixed
Variable access to it Variable levels of take up Implementation matters as well as policy
Fair treatment Less bullying / discrimination in Wales than
elsewhere? Fewer cases?
Evidence of unfair treatment amongst: Ethnic minority groups Women especially pregnant women LGB workers Non-Christian groups Little evidence on disability and age
Trades union membership
Most likely to be members: Women Older people Resident rather than migrant workers No evidence on race, disability, religion or
sexual orientation
Conclusions
Patchwork of evidence Common issues across equality ‘strands’: Routes into employment
- expectations / opportunities- adapting jobs for caring and disability
Pay gaps Bullying and discrimination
The Bevan Foundation
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