Women vital to boosting UK economy

The Women’s Business Council was set up last year to advise the Government on how to boost female employment.

The WBC's report, 'Maximising women's contribution to future economic growth', says that there are 2.4m women who are not working but want to work, and a further 1.3m women who want to increase their hours, and says that if they were working this would boost the economy by 0.5 per cent a year or ten per cent by 2030.

The report also says that if women started their own businesses at the same rate as men there could be one million more entrepreneurs in the UK.

The report by the WBC makes a range of recommendations for the Government and business covering every stage of women’s working lives to remove obstacles to women working and to encourage more women to set up their own businesses.

They include:

• Broadening girls’ aspirations and job choices before they leave school, encouraging more girls to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and maths, where women are under-represented.
• Businesses should embrace the benefits of flexible working and support for working parents.
• The Government should extend childcare tax breaks ‘if the economic climate allows’.
• Appoint a business champion for older workers ‘in the third phase of their working lives’ to promote the business benefits of recruiting and retaining them.
• Provide more support for women who want to set up their own businesses.

Chair of the WBC and chief executive of MITIE, Ruby McGregor-Smith, said, ‘Our actions must start with girls and young women if we are to make a lasting impact. We must also ensure that parents who wish to return to their careers while raising families, have the opportunity to do so and to fulfill their potential.’

In response, the equalities minister Maria Miller urged the business community to act on the council’s recommendations.

Ms Miller said, ‘The Women’s Business Council’s innovative report shows just how important it is, in stark economic terms, for women to be able to contribute fully in the workforce. It is not acceptable that in spite of their skills, talent and achievements women continue to languish behind men in the workplace. We simply cannot afford to ignore the huge additional contribution that women could make. So, we all – business and the Government – need to sweep away the barriers that stop women fulfilling their full potential.’

Purnima Tanuku, chief executive of the National Day Nurseries Association, which contributed to the report, said, ‘Affordable childcare is an absolutely vital ingredient to a successful work life balance and the report has clearly identified the loss of women’s talent caused by a lack of real choice for working parents. However, in finding a solution, parents will not thank Government for a response to the Commission on Childcare that sacrifices quality of early years provision – children need a rich learning experience in a high-quality environment with expert staff in the right numbers, not childcare on the cheap.’

Working Families said that their research suggests that only half of parents are working flexibly and many more would like to do so.

'Flexible working supports everybody'

Sarah Jackson, chief executive of Working Families said, ‘We’re pleased that the Women’s Business Council is encouraging business to use flexible working as a tool to support economic growth. We know that the lack of access to flexible working is a barrier both to women’s participation in employment and to their career progression. 

Our helpline callers reveal that many mothers can’t access the flexible working patterns they need, while others face imposed changes to their contracted hours. 

‘The report recognises that flexible working supports everybody, men and women, and at every stage of their working lives. Women starting out at work, becoming parents, taking on caring responsibilities or moving towards retirement will all benefit when flexible working becomes the norm. Offering flexible working widens opportunities for all and supports business growth.’

Kate Green MP, Labour’s shadow minister for equality, said the report was right to focus on early action on girls’ aspirations and to identify barriers to women progressing at work, including access to childcare.

‘It is also encouraging to see the recognition of the contribution that older women workers can make – an issue that Labour has been championing through our Older Women’s Commission,' she said.

'The Government should take note of each of these recommendations. Instead, it has been cutting support for childcare and tax credits that help women - especially lone parents - to make work pay, introducing a universal credit system that will discourage women in couples from entering paid work, cutting maternity pay in real terms and failing to act on pregnancy discrimination.’

‘Business leaders know that women have a valuable economic contribution to make, and that diversity contributes directly to economic success.’