Gender, work, and labour markets

Women in Britain account for fifty per cent of all employed workers yet the role which they play in economic activity is distinct and different from that of men. Women are more likely than men to work part-time, to experience career breaks, and to be excluded from official statistics when unemployed. Above all, women bear more responsibility for domestic tasks than men. Economic analysis has overlooked the differences between men and women as consumers, producers, workers and employers. This book uses basic principles of economics to evaluate the different roles which men and women play in productive activity and to consider the implications for economic outcomes. The domestic division of labour, the extent of female unemployment and the implications of the introduction of a minimum wage are all considered using introductory economic analysis. Since men and women play distinctive roles in productive activity, economic policies can result in different consequences depending on gender.