I’ve always found myself around women to look up to and admire, four older sisters, a wife, two daughters, friends, colleagues and acquaintances, all juggling careers, families and other commitments, yet society continues to value women less than men.
In our Gloucestershire village I’ve seen women being abused. My daughters have shared some of their experiences and those of their friends in their male dominated workplaces. Even with my limited awareness it was still shocking to read the extent to which society exploits women in the UK. This book should be an essential read for men.
Why are women poorer?
Among the statistics the author presents are these:
- 12,000 women flee abusers each year (p.157).
- 87% of girls 11-21 think that the world will judge them on how they look rather than on their ability (p.218).
- In the UK 2x more women die in childbirth than in Sweden (p.191).
- The average woman does 1,352 free hours of unpaid work each year (p.107).
- In 2016, nearly 60% of women said that protective equipment hampered their work (p.125).
- Average rents in England take 43% of women’s median income (p.151).
- Failure to pay a TV license is the number one reason for women being prosecuted (p.13).
- Women pay 2% more to buy a house and get less when they sell (p. 150).
The author takes us through the many contributory factors such as abuse, bias, business, care, economics, education, health, income, law, looks, media, money, oppression, poverty, and power. Each and more are covered by the book. The following stood out for me.
Health
The extent to which the National Health Service often fails to look after women is exposed. Maternal mortality, ie the death rate of women giving birth, is high in the UK compared with other European countries: it is 9.6/100,000 compared to 5 in Ireland and Sweden, and 2.7 in Norway. The author cites as another example the fact that the NHS does not fund the treatment of lipoedema, a condition that mainly affects women resulting in swelling of legs, thighs and the arms, and is due to the abnormal accumulation of fat under the skin that can lead to issues with mobility. Treatment would be a process similar to liposuction, but classed as cosmetic it is unfunded.
“Cut the funding because women will carry on doing the work anyway” (p.113)
The NHS doesn’t just discriminate against women as patients, but also as staff, with, for example, cuts in district nursing place soaring caseloads on its largely female workforce.
Business and Economics
For many GDP has lost all value as a meaningful measure of anything. One illustration of how utterly pointless it is is the assertion that in one day in 2014 the UK economy grew by £5bn overnight as
“economists had begun to include sex work in their GDP calculations” (p.106)
Why should we take the need to increase growth and productivity seriously when what amounts to illegal activities, that some consider to be exploitative, are included!
“Pink it, shrink it raise the price” (p.122-6)
There are many examples of how businesses can and do exploit women. It is more expensive to have a blouse dry cleaned than a shirt, or for a woman to get a haircut than a man. When buying a car, dealers will offer lower prices to white males than to Black men and female buyers. Garages will also often quote different prices for the same job. Women’s and girls’ versions of toys and clothes cost more.
A woman may pay 20% more for the same razor packaged for women than a male equivalent would cost. In 2019 Parliament rejected a bill to prohibit gender differential pricing, but even that would not have stopped a business owner or manager setting prices based on they think they can get away with, rather than what is fair.
Law
The extent to which the law is stacked against women comes up time and time again, the following was from a judgement in 1913:
“A women is not a person within the meaning of the solicitors Act 1843….” (p.54)
Many women are disadvantaged when it comes to divorce, and cuts to legal aid mean that they are unable to benefit from the rules designed to protect them (p. 176).
This is also true when it comes to enforcing equal pay, with 25% of UK companies paying female staff 20% less than men, a fact that is largely ignored (p.196). Government refused to strengthen the law, saying that women could take their employer to tribunal, but with legal aid withdrawn individual women cannot afford to fight their case. With the help of trade unions women were able to go all the way to the Supreme Court in their battle with Birmingham City Council.
“Thinner women tend to earn more … Overweight men enjoy the highest pay premium …” (p. 223)
Equal Pay Day is the date each year by which a man on an average wage has earned what a women on average wage will earn for the whole year. In 2023 that date was the 22 November.
What can we do?
The final chapters are disappointing as the author stays with what individual women can do, rather than what women can do collectively. As the women who work for Birmingham City Council have shown, collective action plays a vital part in getting justice.
It seems that many of the practices identified have their root in the neoliberal agenda to drive growth and increase profit. Surveillance capitalism (p.136) is rightly called out, but rather that question whether capitalism is part of the problem, the author sees it as the solution. Saving is a good thing to do if you can, but for many who are struggling to keep a roof over their heads and food on the table, considering long term investment opportunities is unrealistic.
The author mentions that in Eastern Europe women benefited from socialism, as education led to senior positions, with maternity leave and free child care. Today with capitalism established many women still hold senior roles in some sectors, but the benefits have long gone (p.194-5).
To me it seems that laws made by men favour men over women, and that the body that makes our laws needs to be more representative and accountable . The way political parties are funded, how they choose candidates, and the frequency of elections, are just some of the changes needed to make parliament the foundation on which to build the fair and just society we need to address this blatant unfairness. Women currently make up only 35% of MPs and 30% of members of the House of Lords. Scope for improvement? – Definitely.
Why Women Are Poorer Than Men and What We Can Do About It by Annabel Williams. Michael Joseph / Penguin 2022.
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