Engender blog

Guest Post: Sexism is societal problem that every party must tackle

Guest blog by Kezia Dugdale, MSP and deputy leader of the Scottish Labour Party

The months leading up to the General Election have been a reminder of just how blatant sexism is across society. Whether it’s the sexist tweets I get sent about my appearance after every TV interview or reading through a newspaper in the morning and taking a mental note of how many times a male journalist or editor is in the top line, the harsh reality for women in Scotland cannot be missed.

Whether it is in a discussion, whether it is in the media or if it is within my own party, I have and will continue to, stand up to the sexism women face day in and day out.

What are your plans for women and children?

This General Election, ask your candidates what their plans are for women and children.

We know that women, children and young people have been disproportionately impacted on by recent changes to public spending. What happens at Westminster hugely affects us all. We'd like your support in asking candidates how they will protect and support women and children from discrimination, poverty and harm.

Guest Post: Women at the heart of decision making: How women’s goals and ambitions can shape and create better public policy

by Lynn Williams, SCVO. Lynn is also an unpaid carer.

I left university some 20 years ago (how did that happen?!) with real fire in my belly, angry at the injustice of poverty and how those in poverty were treated.

That passion for social change was never lost but was rekindled when I became part of the carers’ movement, which fights for support that should be readily available to help carers and their loved ones achieve the quality of life so many of us take for granted.

As an unpaid carer for my husband, that fight has affected our own, small family unit. Battling burgeoning bureaucracy in public services is a daily part of our lives. In those battles, carers talk about losing themselves and of having to give up on their own dreams and ambitions. For many, battling for appropriate care means leaving work and abandoning their career. I have seen this happen to fellow activists and it’s something which I fear.

I know what giving up work will mean – consider Carers Allowance which remains the lowest of income replacement benefits. It means being the target of the Coalition’s “slash and burn” policy agenda. It would mean being viewed in society as being something less. Politicians talk a good game. They say they value unpaid care –whether that be for children or family members. But watch Engender’s new video for the “Making Work Visible” campaign and see the reality. Paid work is still the prize in terms of economic policy – unpaid work remains unsupported and undervalued.

The Scottish Government estimates that by 2037, over one million of us will become carers. The impact of caring is borne disproportionately by women and it affects their place and value in the economy and within the labour market. Carers UK tells us that 2 million people have quit work to care and almost 3 million have reduced their working hours. This increases dependence on the benefits system and on tax credits which are being cut significantly. Poverty is therefore a likely outcome for far too many unpaid carers.

Meanwhile, the TUC highlights the “lack of well paid jobs for women who don’t work full time”. Too many jobs do not offer the flexibility needed to continue to balance work and care. Take all of this into account and then consider the increasing number of sandwich carers – those who care for an elderly relative and a disabled spouse or child. Devaluing the care economy and not dealing directly with the increasingly unbearable pressures on carers is a recipe for disaster.

And it is these very dreams and ambitions - the experience of women – which could provide some direction and vision as we come face to face with very serious and complex policy challenges – tighter finances, public service reform and creation of social security policy in Scotland. In the words of Ruth Bader Ginsburgh: “Women belong in all places where decisions are being made….It shouldn’t be that women are the exception.”

She was referring to the justice system, but her wisdom extends beyond this. As we leave behind International Women’s Day, the real catalyst for change will come when there are genuine opportunities for women at the very centre of the policy making process. We can start with the planned Carers’ Bill, the Smith legislative clauses and implementation of the refreshed Economic Strategy. We have an enviable and once in a lifetime opportunity to act and be the change that is so desperately needed.

International Women's Day - Let's #makeworkvisible

Happy International Women's Day!

Not a lot of people know that International Women's Day used to be calling International Working Women's Day.

But what does being a working woman actually mean? Governments and international bodies tend to recognise work as something you get paid for. You offer your services, skills and time, and your receive a wage for it. This wage then gets spent on rent, bills, food and goods, and paying other people for services, and so the economy functions. This is what's known as the 'formal economy'. Things which are deemed not to contribute to the formal economy are normally counted as 'leisure'.

There are huge problems with the formal economy for women – we still (in 2015!) have a pay gap which means women earn 13% less than men as full time workers and 32% less than men part-time. Women are more likely to be in precarious and low paid positions. We are less likely to become CEO (in fact, if you're a man named John, James, William or Robert you're more likely to be CEO than a woman!) and are still discriminated against in the workplace.

But perhaps the biggest problem with the 'formal economy' is that it doesn't recognise the value (economic or otherwise) of any work which doesn't fit into that rigid pattern of work-earn-spend. Work such as raising children, caring for relatives, housework and contributing to communities are not counted in budgets and figures such as GDP (Gross Domestic Product – the way which most governments measure economic activity), even though they clearly contribute to the wellbeing of the country. This sort of work is still predominantly done by women – 62% of unpaid care-givers are women, the majority of childcare is still undertaken by women, and the time men spend doing housework has only increased at a rate of one minute per day per year since the '70s!

Watch our brilliant new film 'Marginal-eyes' which highlights the problem of undervalued and unseen women's work!

Please help us spread the word about this important issue on Twitter and Facebook using the hashtag #makeworkvisible. We also have graphics highlighting the issue which can be found on our our Flickr page.