Introduction
The Fair Work Convention, an independent body promoting and advocating fair work in Scotland, has commissioned a qualitative examination of the pay and career experiences of women aged over 50[1]. This demographic has a higher gender pay gap than younger women and can face combined disadvantage in relation to their gender and their age. These disadvantages create barriers to fair work and a fulfilling career. For some, this results in an earlier exit from the workforce than might otherwise have been the case.
In commissioning this research, the Convention hoped to build a better understanding of the unique challenges and needs of women over 50, with the aim of identifying actionable workplace practices to improve their working lives while also bringing benefits for employers. The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) were commissioned to undertake the research and have now reported their findings drawn from a series of interviews with women workers and employers. The full report can be accessed at: www.fairworkconvention.scot/fair-work-convention-research/ It sets out the methodology used alongside the research findings on experiences of pay, progression, health and well-being in the workplace followed by NIESR's Recommendations.
Key insights include:
- A finding that age is not often considered as part of equality or diversity planning within workplaces. Age is a protected characteristic, but does not receive the same attention as other characteristics such as gender or race.
- A verdict that inequalities in pay and progression among women over 50 are not only a legacy of the gendered practices experienced by women early on in their careers, but that current workplace practices are also having an impact.
- A recognition that a combination of caring responsibilities and personal health, particularly the menopause, have significant impacts on many women's preferences for work, but that preferences are not fixed and women's aspirations for their careers vary though all can be supported through effective communication and training.
- A discovery that few employers took time to engage well with this part of their workforce to understand the barriers that exist and the changes that could be made to enable women over 50 to participate fully in the organisation.