This report is primarily concerned with identifying who gets the higher level jobs and who gets the lower level jobs, taking into account age, life stage, gender, ethnicity, qualifications, children and family formation. Of particular interest is the relationship between qualifications and jobs. It is well-known that qualifications and occupational status are highly correlated. This research compares groups with the same qualifications, to enable differences in job returns to be examined, and to identify the extent to which some highly qualified people (for example graduates) end up in low level jobs. It is particularly important to understand how far the improved qualifications and skills of women, and other groups, are being effectively deployed in the workplace. The gender gap in who gets the high and low level jobs is large and pervasive. Women continue to be disproportionately employed in low level jobs. This has changed little in the last decade despite the relative increase in average educational qualifications for women over this period. Thus, despite their enhanced potential, women continue to dominate low level jobs. Men continue to dominate in higher level jobs, especially in the top 10 jobs. Career progression to higher paid jobs continues much longer for men than for women. For women with dependent children, job outcomes are particularly poor, in part because of the predominance of part-time employment for this group. Having children in their 20s, rather than later, particularly affects the level of job outcomes for women. The presence of dependent children in the household has a negative impact for fathers too, but disappears in their thirties. Certain ethnic groups, especially older workers, also have very poor job outcomes.
Excerpt from published executive summary reprinted by permission of the copyright owner.
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