Occupational Segregation (Hansard, 8 January 2004)

§ Jacqui Smith

Within the recent Skills Strategy, 21^st Century Skills, Realising our Potential, we have highlighted the challenge in making real improvements in raising the skills level of our workforce. We know that the majority of working women are concentrated in just five occupational groups which are often low paid and low skilled. For example 89 per cent. of hairdressers and beauticians are women and in a survey their average pay was found to be the second lowest of all occupations¹.

Some sectors identified as having significant skill weaknesses, such as Construction and Transport and Communications, have extreme occupational segregation. Only 9 per cent. of the workforce in Construction are women and 24 per cent. in Transport and Communications.

While we cannot entirely influence women's career choices, both the Skills Strategy and our recent Innovation Report identifies some of the levers to improve skills levels and for the UK to have a highly educated workforce with a culture of lifelong learning. To do this we have made a commitment to provide better information, advice and guidance on skills, training and qualifications so that people know what is available to them.

We have identified that our young people need to be properly prepared for the world of work. That is why we have commissioned a Working Group, chaired by Mike Tomlinson to advise on the development of more coherent vocational programmes for 14–19 year olds to ensure they have the necessary skills for employment and adult life. We want both girls and boys to make informed choices about their vocational routes and our Modern Apprenticeships will help support young people in their career choices and to improve their workplace skills, particularly at craft, supervisory and technician level.

Our Employer Training Pilots, introduced in September 2002, is designed to increase the demand for training by reducing barriers and providing training in more responsive ways. Over 20,000 learners and over 5,000 employers are now engaged. Trends show that 440W overall there is a high proportion of female learners involved in pilots from all sectors, with a large majority concentrated in education and health and social work which is in line with the national average. ¹Source: Women's Incomes over the lifetime-WEU 1999.