1. ESRC Gender Equality Network Research Priority Network on Gender Inequalities in Production & Reproduction www.genet.ac.uk

2. Background Demise of male breadwinner family - labour market changes/changes in parenting partnership Paradigm shift in gender relations Greater policy recognition of equality although policies ambiguous Some human capital convergence but inequalities persistent

3. GeNet Aims Produce theoretically informed high quality empirical research that illuminates three inter- related aspects of gender inequalities (life course pathways, resource contexts & policy response) Contribute to theoretical debates e.g. space-time dimensions of life course theory; contextualised capabilities; gender inequalities Contribute to evidence of how lives/structures are changing & how policy can intervene to effectively to promote greater equality

4. 9 Linked Projects 3 Inter-related themes Pathways to Adult Attainment & Life Course Processes Changing occupations and careers of women and men Biographical agency and developmental outcomes Gendered pathways to adulthood Resources, Gender, Ethnic & Class Inequalities Gender, time allocation & the wage gap Within-household inequalities in income and power Gender, ethnicity, migration and service employment Class & gender, employment and family Policy Responses to Gender Inequalities Addressing gender inequality through corporate governance Policy initiatives tackling inequalities in work and care in UK & EU

5. Addressing Gender Equality through Responsible Corporate Governance (Simon Deakin) Pragmatism Optimism Absence of collective bargaining; absence of mandatory pay audits; absence of shareholder activism Kingsmill review – responsible corporate governance; share holder activism – substitute for hard law in achieving pay equality Discrimination Law Review – reflexive approaches to regulation of equal pay alternative to hard law Scepticism

6. UK and EU Initiatives on work and care Jane Lewis Male Breadwinner Model (MBM) ; womens economic dependence on men; provision for care; didnt fit with reality. Citizen Worker Model (CWM) problematic. No better reality fit than MBM – obligation to care problematic. Hard and soft policy logics differ e.g. US anti-discrimination laws (Hard) ; UK social policy approach (soft) Since 1997 UK has embraced policy goal shift in favour of better work/family balance, but instruments of policy implementation less bold (e.g. no shift on 48 hr working week, maternity leave lengthened not parental leave) Policy fudges around gender equality aiming at gender neutral solutions to work-life balance – but unrealistic when family care remains so highly gendered

7. Careers Project (Shirley Dex, Heather Joshi et al) How far is production and reproduction incompatible or in tension, particularly for women? How do associated processes differ for men, women and childrens lives across generations? Data: British Cohort Studies 1946, 1958, 1970 and New Millennium Data: British Cohort Studies 1946, 1958, 1970 and New Millennium

8. Careers Project How do policy initiatives and employer practices affect careers of men and women and mothers and fathers? Is part-time work directive reducing part- time pay penalty? Are penalties for career gaps narrowing across generations?

9. UK Cohort differences in family and education: women now aged 35-85

10. Masculinization of Female Life Course (UK Cohort effects: Participation- Joshi et al 2005)

11. Time out-of-work penalty increased predicted probabilities of occupational downward mobility (WES: 1922-53; NCDS 1958)

12. Part-time work penalty increased predicted probabilities of occupational downward mobility (WES: 1922-53; NCDS 1958) but will p-t work directive be effective?

13. Paid and Unpaid Work intrinsically linked If women want to get to top in business or professional world then recommendations from research clear: Do not have children – or at least dont expect to spend much time with them Do not take time out of employment career to care for others Do not put others needs above own, if interested in maximising pay & promotion opportunities

14. Gender inequalities in production & reproduction – the implications GeNet events archive on www.genet.ac www.genet.ac Shows materials of conferences/workshops/seminars including: Gender and valuing of care Gender inequalities in ageing societies Women & Employment Survey – 25 th anniversary Gender, class, employment and family

15. Challenges facing GeNet & EHRC How to best avoid gender being interpreted as women balance the attention given to inequalities in paid and unpaid work ensure that focus on diversity doesnt imply disproportionate attention given to minorities enable research primarily concerned with UK to engage with international agendas