Women In Apprentceships

More women are taking up apprenticeships, but they still lag behind their male counterparts in entering well-paid sectors, such as engineering and construction, a TUC survey has found.

The survey, ‘Still More (Better Paid) Jobs for the Boys’, found that a fairly even proportion of men and women began apprenticeships in 2006-07, at 54.2% and 45.8% respectively.

The Equal Opportunities Commission conducted detailed research into apprentice participation patterns three years ago, the latest evidence shows that things have either not improved or, in some sectors, have gone from bad to woeful. Only 1.3% of construction apprentices are female; in vehicle maintenance the ratio is 1.4%. In engineering the figure is 2.5%, which actually represents a decline from 4.5% in 2002/3. And in jobs traditionally dominated by female workers there has been little change either; 97.1% of apprenticeships in childcare were filled by women, as were 91.7% of apprenticeships in hairdressing.

Frances O'Grady, TUC deputy general secretary, says: "Too many young women are being limited to apprenticeships in low-paid traditionally female occupations like childcare and hairdressing, and are unable to break into well-paid male occupations like engineering..."Low pay in apprenticeships happens much along gender lines. Women receive on average 26% less pay than men, so action needs to be taken now to tackle this divide once and for all. Government and, in particular, employers, need to take this seriously and make equality a major priority."