Unequal impact? Coronavirus and the gendered economic impact

Women and Equalities Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 9 Jun 2020 Closed: 4 Nov 2021 Parliament page
Unequal impact? Coronavirus and the gendered economic impact The Women and Equalities Committee is launching three sub-inquiries, drawing on evidence to our Unequal impact: Coronavirus (Covid-19) and the impact on people with protected characteristics inquiry. Read more about our decision to launch the sub-inquires . In this sub-inquiry, we want … Read more
25 Recommendations
12 Conclusions
1 Report
4 Oral sessions
1 Letter
4 Events
Activity timeline 7 events
14 May
2021
Report published
27 Apr
2021
Correspondence
9 Feb
2021
Report published
4 Nov
2020
Oral evidence
14 Oct
2020
Oral evidence
16 Sep
2020
Oral evidence
8 Jul
2020
Oral evidence
Oral evidence sessions 4 sessions
4 Nov 2020
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Helen Walker · Department of Work and Pensions Jo Warner · Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Kemi Badenoch MP · Government Equalities Office Mims Davies MP · Department for Work and Pensions Paul Scully MP · Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Paul Trenell · Government Equalities Office Tom Hemingway · HM Treasury
14 Oct 2020
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Unequal impact? Coronavirus and the gendered economic impact
Dr Duncan Brown · Institute of Employment Studies Dr Monica Costas Dias · Institute for Fiscal Studies Professor Jill Rubery · University of Manchester
16 Sep 2020
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Liz Bayram · Professional Association for Childcare and Early Years (PACEY) Mary Robertson · Trades Union Congress Victoria Brownlie · The British Beauty Council
8 Jul 2020
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Dr Mary-Ann Stephenson · UK Women's Budget Group Professor Abi Adams-Prassl · University of Oxford Rosalind Bragg · Maternity Action Victoria Benson · Gingerbread
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Fifth report: Unequal impact? Coronavirus and the gendered econo… HC 385 9 Feb 2021 37 Responded
Recommendations & Conclusions
7 results
Clear
10 Recommendation Not Addressed
Fifth report: Unequal impact? Coro…
The Department for Work and Pensions must urgently conduct or commission research to develop its...
The Department for Work and Pensions must urgently conduct or commission research to develop its understanding of the gendered impact of Universal Credit design, including the wait for the first payment; the single household payment structure; joint eligibility assessment; and … Read more
Government Response
The government discusses "A Plan for Jobs" supporting unemployed people, including women, through schemes like Kickstart and Sector-based Work Academy Programmes, and cross-government collaboration to support UC claimants with barriers like childcare. However, it does not commit to conducting or commissioning research into the gendered impact of Universal Credit design elements as recommended.
Government Equalities Office
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19 Recommendation Not Addressed
Fifth report: Unequal impact? Coro…
We recommend that the Government establish quotas for women in its Kickstart scheme.
We recommend that the Government establish quotas for women in its Kickstart scheme.
Government Response
The government's response discusses gender pay gap reporting regulations and extended deadlines, failing to address the recommendation regarding establishing quotas for women in the Kickstart scheme.
Government Equalities Office
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20 Recommendation Not Addressed
Fifth report: Unequal impact? Coro…
We recommend that DWP introduce training for Jobcentre Plus work coaches on supporting applicants into...
We recommend that DWP introduce training for Jobcentre Plus work coaches on supporting applicants into gender ‘atypical’ jobs. (Paragraph 80) Pregnancy and Maternity Discrimination
Government Response
The government's response discusses support for disabled people in employment, the voluntary reporting framework for disability, and the ethnicity pay reporting consultation, but does not address the recommendation for DWP to introduce training for Jobcentre Plus work coaches on supporting applicants into gender 'atypical' jobs.
Government Equalities Office
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21 Recommendation Not Addressed
Fifth report: Unequal impact? Coro…
We are gravely concerned by evidence detailing potentially unlawful and discriminatory practices towards pregnant women...
We are gravely concerned by evidence detailing potentially unlawful and discriminatory practices towards pregnant women and those on maternity leave during the pandemic. This should have been better anticipated by the government at the beginning of the pandemic and preventative … Read more
Government Response
The government's response discusses support for disabled people in employment and the status of ethnicity pay reporting consultations, but it completely fails to address the recommendation regarding discrimination against pregnant women and new mothers.
Government Equalities Office
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22 Recommendation Not Addressed
Fifth report: Unequal impact? Coro…
We urge the Government to introduce legislation in this Parliamentary session to extend redundancy protection...
We urge the Government to introduce legislation in this Parliamentary session to extend redundancy protection to pregnant women and new mothers. The Government must also publish a cross-departmental strategy, following consultation with stakeholders, for dealing with pregnancy and maternity discrimination. … Read more
Government Response
The government's response details the collection and publication of redundancy data by the Insolvency Service and ONS, but it does not address the recommendation to introduce legislation for extending redundancy protection for pregnant women and new mothers, or to publish a cross-departmental strategy on maternity discrimination.
Government Equalities Office
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26 Conclusion Not Addressed
Fifth report: Unequal impact? Coro…
We are concerned that the Government Equalities Office (GEO) did not anticipate how inequalities were...
We are concerned that the Government Equalities Office (GEO) did not anticipate how inequalities were likely to be exacerbated by the pandemic and ensure that it influenced the policy response, including in relation to employment, welfare, childcare and pregnancy and … Read more
Government Response
The government details the Equality Hub's goal to ensure evidence-based measures, considering various characteristics and data gaps through the Equality Data Programme and ONS Inclusive Data Taskforce. It also references gender pay gap reporting, but does not directly address the committee's specific concerns about the GEO's failure to anticipate and influence policy during the pandemic.
Government Equalities Office
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27 Conclusion Not Addressed
Fifth report: Unequal impact? Coro…
We were concerned to hear the Minister for Equalities repeatedly refer to considering the effects...
We were concerned to hear the Minister for Equalities repeatedly refer to considering the effects of policies “in the round” in response to questions about the gendered impact of the Government’s policies. We are deeply concerned that a GEO Minister … Read more
Government Response
The government details the Equality Hub's goal to base fairness measures on evidence, considering various characteristics and data gaps through the Equality Data Programme and ONS Inclusive Data Taskforce. It also mentions supporting gender pay gap reporting, but does not directly address the committee's specific concern about a Minister appearing dismissive of the Public Sector Equality Duty.
Government Equalities Office
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Government Response AI assessment · 37 of 25 classified
Accepted 7
Accepted in Part 6
Acknowledged 2
Deferred 2
Not Addressed 7
Rejected 13
Total 25 recs + 12 conclusions
Correspondence 1 letter
27 Apr 2021 EHRC response to the Committees report ‘Unequal Impact? Coronavirus and the gendered economic impact’
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