Leaders lack legitimacy
More must be done to help women secure top jobs in business, politics and the public sector, according to a new report.
The Equal Opportunities Commission’s report claims women only command one in ten of jobs in many areas of public life.
The report, Sex & Power: Who Runs Britain?, says gender imbalance makes it difficult for leaders to have “legitimacy” for their decisions.
Decrying the lack of opportunities for women as a sheer “waste of talent”, the report highlights that women only take up seven per cent of top police officers, 12 per cent of university vice-chancellors, 12 per cent of local authority council leaders and 18 per cent of MPs.
More optimistically, the report finds women accounting for 23 per cent of the Civil Service’s senior management and 36 per cent of public appointments.
But there is much to be done, the report says.
Julie Mellor, of the Equal Opportunities Commission, said: “Almost 30 years since the Sex Discrimination Act was passed, women are still massively under-represented in positions of influence in Britain.
“No one can argue any more that it’s just a matter of time until more women make it to the top. There have been talented women coming up in business, public life and politics for years.”
The report calls for “positive action” to erase past discrimination and more ways to promote flexible working.
