How employers can improve their practice by applying a gender lens

To make meaningful progress on gender equality in the workplace, we know that employers need to do more to embed a gender analysis in service design, budget processes, and in all workplace policies and practices. In Equally Safe at Work, one of the criteria under the bronze tier is for employers to review a policy, practice or programme to ensure it’s gender-sensitive. However, what employers have told us is that, for many people, they’re unclear what gender-sensitive or gender analysis mean and even less clear about how to put it into practice.

That’s why we’re pleased to announce that we’ve developed a new resource, Applying a gender lens: a tool for employers, to clearly outline how employers can take a step by step approach for applying a gender analysis to employment policies, initiatives or programmes. It will also complement other mainstreaming work that organisations are undertaking, including equality impact assessments.

What does applying a gender lens mean?

Applying a gender lens, which means the same as doing a gender analysis, refers to reviewing a policy, practice or programme to determine what the differential impact is on women and men. This means understanding the different experiences of women in your workplace and also taking specific actions to address any inequalities. Women face gendered barriers that shape their experience of studying, training and employment. Without understanding and addressing these issues, women will continue to be left behind in the labour market.

The new tool uses modern apprenticeships as a worked example for employers to see how to put the steps into practice. Modern apprenticeships mirror the labour market in terms of framework participation being characterised by occupational segregation and different levels of pay. Modern apprenticeships are also the key entry point into the labour market for many young people, making it a good intervention point and opportunity for influencing the make up of the workforce in certain occupations.

For example, when looking at modern apprenticeships, there are clear differences in who participates in certain frameworks. Between April and June this year, the frameworks that had the highest number of new starts among young women were children and young people, and social services and healthcare. In contrast, for young men, construction frameworks had the highest number of new starts, with the majority of young men joining civil engineering and technical frameworks. We see that young women are concentrated in frameworks which are associated with undervalued work, lower pay and poorer labour market outcomes compared to young men. A further point to consider is around completion rates. Women are more likely to complete their apprenticeship if they’re in a female-dominated framework and less likely to do so if they’re in a male-dominated framework. This clearly highlights the challenges that women face entering male-dominated roles that haven’t considered the different needs of women or risks they may be facing, for example, an increased risk of sexual harassment and sexist workplace cultures.

As well, there are often practical barriers that prevent men and women from entering into non-traditional frameworks which is often overlooked or not factored in. For example, women are more likely than men to have primary responsibilities for children, older people and disabled people. A lack of flexible working or a lack of appropriate notice for college timetables or shifts means that women may not be able to participate in certain frameworks because they are unable to organise childcare in time. As well, for disabled women, who may find flexible working beneficial for managing their condition, a lack of quality flexible working opportunities means that they’re excluded from different roles and workplaces.

For racially minoritised women participating in apprenticeships, who made up 4% of all new starts across all framework between April and June,[1] research has highlighted that they face discrimination, are offered fewer hours per week and received less formal training than their White peers.

To be able to apply a gender lens, employers need to understand the root causes of gender inequality in their workplaces and look at why there are different experiences between men and women. This involves recognising the different expectations, inequalities, levels of power and needs of groups of women and men in the workplace.

What you can do

Our new guidance outlines how employers can develop gender-sensitive practice by following four steps:

• Review and gather data to identify any gaps and determine how you will fill them.
• Identify the gendered differences within your workplace.
• Understand the causes of the gendered differences.
• Take action to address any inequalities and measure progress.

The guidance also highlights the importance of using intersectional data, addressing gendered barriers, and taking action to ensure women’s experiences are included in the design and delivery of workplace policies and practices. It aims to support employers to better understand that applying a gender lens requires targeted and committed action. When applying a gender lens is done right, it has the possibility to transform workplaces to be more representative of its staff, service users and wider community.  

Use our new tool here.

[1] Based on the data from Skills Development Scotland, respondents stated their race or ethnicity was Mixed or Multiple; Asian; African; Caribbean or Black; and Other ethnic group.

EVENT: Excluded by Design – Research exploring disabled women’s employment in Scotland.

Close the Gap is launching a new report, Excluded by Design – Research exploring disabled women’s employment in Scotland. This research seeks to highlight how structural inequality, discrimination, and inaccessible workplaces continue to exclude disabled women from well-paid employment.

The event will feature a presentation of key findings from the research and keynote remarks, followed by a panel discussion and Q&A session. We will explore how action across government, employers, and wider society can deliver a labour market that truly works for disabled women.

Anna Ritchie Allan, Executive Director at Close the Gap, will be chairing the event and Richard Lochhead MSP, Minister for Business and Employment, has been invited to give a keynote address.

Confirmed speakers include – Jennifer Sweeney, Policy and Parliamentary Manager at Close the Gap, Tressa Burke, Chief Executive at Glasgow Disability Alliance, Heather Fisken, Chief Executive at Inclusion Scotland, and Carol Wood, Chair of STUC Disabled Workers Committee.

Event Details

*Hybrid event – online and in person*

Date/time: Tuesday 25^th November 2025, 10.00am – 01.00pm

Online or in person, at the DoubleTree by Hilton Glasgow Central

You can register for the free event here.

Lunch with be provided for those attending in person.

Full support and accessibility information can be found on Eventbrite.

Please let us know of any additional access needs when you register and we’ll do everything we can to support you.

If you are unable to register online, please email us at email info@closethegap.org.uk for assistance.

Challenge Poverty Week: Better jobs, pay, hours, conditions & worker voice for all women

Today’s Challenge Poverty Week theme is calling for better jobs for everyone who needs one with fair conditions and wages that pay the bills. Low paid and undervalued work is a key contributor to people’s experiences of poverty and in-work poverty levels. Women are disproportionately more likely to be in poverty, with disabled women, racially-minoritised women, young mothers and migrant women facing intersecting inequalities which compound their risk of poverty. Given the current political climate, Close the Gap wants to draw attention to the experiences of migrant women, many of whom work in jobs that are essential to society. Yet the growing anti-migrant sentiment in public discourse fails to acknowledge this, and instead is further marginalising migrant women and their families.  

Why women’s work matters 

Women have a distinctive experience of the Scottish labour market as they continue to be the majority of low-paid workers, and are more likely to be underemployed and in insecure work than men. This results in women’s higher levels of poverty than men, higher rates of in-work poverty and being more likely to experience persistent poverty than men.  There are divergent experiences within this as women are not a homogenous group, and disabled women, racially-minoritised women, young mothers, migrant women as well as refugee and asylum-seeking women experience additional intersecting inequalities. This all contributes to the gender pay gap and perpetuates persistent inequalities in the world of work and beyond.  

Women’s experience of poverty is driven by their concentration in low-paid, undervalued work. This is a result of the systemic undervaluation of ‘women’s work’, such as cleaning, care, and retail, which is undervalued because it’s done by women. Although the extension of the Real Living Wage in undervalued female-dominated jobs is a welcome start to addressing women’s low pay it doesn’t equate to revaluing the skills and status of these jobs – which is sorely needed.  

Investment in undervalued sectors must go beyond wage rises — it must recognise and reward the essential skills and economic value of women’s work. To date, mainstream economic policy takes a homogenous, gender-blind approach that continues to fail women – especially racially-minoritised women, migrant women, disabled women, and young mothers.  

The care sector is a clear example. Despite being increasingly skilled work that is essential to the economy, care jobs are still treated as low value, with widespread poor pay, insecure contracts and long hours. This is unjust for the overwhelmingly female workforce, and it undermines the quality and sustainability of services as demand for social care increases.  

Creating good working conditions for women goes beyond simply hours and wages. It is about security, flexibility, fairness, and representation. Women in undervalued sectors and in precarious roles have less trade union representation and less access to bargaining power – or none at all. Access to collective bargaining strengthens workers voices and allows them to better advocate for their rights and positive change. Close the Gap is a supporter of sectoral bargaining and urges the Scottish Government to commit to use sectoral bargaining to improve and set pay, terms and conditions in key sectors, such as the social care sector.  

The importance of migrant women’s work 

There has been a deeply concerning rise in far-right activism and anti-migrant rhetoric in Scotland and across the UK. Migrant communities are being scapegoated for systemic failures in our economy and public services. As we set out in our recent statement, these narratives are dangerous and inaccurate.  

Migrant women play an indispensable role in Scotland’s economy. Evidence shows that migrant women are over-represented in low-paid, insecure work, particularly in social care, compared to other groups of women. Their skills and contributions are chronically undervalued, leaving many trapped in poverty despite working in essential jobs. Migrant women in particular are more likely to be underemployed, despite being highly skilled, due to non-recognition of qualifications, language barriers, and discrimination.  

Migrant women are also more likely to work in roles with little or no trade union representation, leaving them with less bargaining power and fewer opportunities to improve pay and conditions. This results is migrant women being taken advantage of and exploited, including: withholding of salary, insecure hours and pay, no access to holiday leave or breaks, and being threatened and abused at work. Even when migrant women are aware of their rights, the power differentials, insecure contracts, exploitative employers, and the threat of dismissal make it extremely difficult to challenge. Structural racism is central to migrant women’s experiences, depleting their ability to challenge employers and access good quality work elsewhere.  

For women on visas tied to specific employers, or those with no recourse to public funds, the risks of raising concerns are greater. Many endure exploitative conditions because the consequences of losing a job could mean destitution, deportation, or being unable to support their families.  

These barriers mean that legal rights are often not rights in practice for migrant women. A fairer economy must not only legislate for better jobs and conditions but also ensure women have the knowledge, security, and support to claim them. Challenging poverty requires us to reject divisive rhetoric and build an economy rooted in dignity, equality and fairness for all. 

How do we make sure all women have adequate incomes? 

Scottish Government must take substantive to address the underlying causes of women’s labour market inequality including better jobs, pay, hours, conditions and representation. Better jobs goes beyond more than pay. Women need secure hours, flexible working, safer conditions and a real voice in the workplace. To achieve this, Scotland must: 

• Value “women’s work” by raising pay and conditions in care and other female-dominated sectors 
• Strengthen worker voice and collective bargaining across female dominated sectors, including the recognition of sectoral bargaining across the care sector  
• Collect and publish intersectional labour market data to drive accountability 
• Implement mandatory gender pay gap action plans as a part of reform of the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED)  
• Invest in affordable, flexible childcare that works for all. 

Equally important is challenging the spread of far-right disinformation and hate. Urgent action is needed from Scottish and UK Governments to address the increasing poverty and inequality that is fuelling the power of the far-right activism. Years of austerity policies and public sector cuts have shredded the social security safety net and created a scarcity of public services. We need urgent investment to create good-quality jobs, improvements to social infrastructure, such as childcare and social care, social security, education and housing. Until women’s work – both paid and unpaid – is properly valued, Scotland cannot claim to have an economy that works for all. 

New project focused on tackling young mothers’ labour market inequality

We’re excited to launch our new project in partnership with Save the Children. We’ll be working together to deliver a two-year project focused on understanding and addressing the barriers young mothers face in the labour market, particularly with regards to in-work poverty and sustaining fair work. We’re delighted to be supported by The Robertson Trust, who have awarded funding under their Work Pathways theme to enable this work. 

Why this project? 

“The project is important for women’s rights, more specifically for giving vulnerable young women a voice.” - Member of the Mums’ Project Advisers Group 

Young mothers are among the most marginalised in the labour market. They’re less likely to be paid the Real Living Wage, more likely to be in part-time, insecure work, and more vulnerable to income volatility. Systemic influencers including gender norms, men’s violence, disability discrimination, and racism also shape young mothers’ workplace experiences. Their gendered experiences as women in the labour market are compounded by harmful stigma surrounding young mothers, further restricting access to fair work.  

The lack of fair work for young mothers and their starkly higher levels of in-work poverty is an economic injustice that not only affects their financial and mental wellbeing but also has longer-term consequences for them and their children. Families with a mother aged under 25 are a priority group for the Scottish Government in tackling child poverty, with 55% of children in these families experiencing relative poverty. Despite this, young mothers are routinely invisible in policy responses and employer efforts to improve job quality. The absence of evidence on young mothers’ experiences is a key issue which this work aims to address. A strong evidence base is needed to drive action from policymakers, and employers need tailored support to enable them to develop employment practice that challenges the barriers young mothers face. 

What will the project involve? 

Two groups have been convened to ensure that lived and learned experience shape the direction of the project. 

1. Mums’ Project Advisers Group – consisting of 8 young mothers from across Scotland with experience of low income and/or in-work poverty. The ambition is to co-produce as much of the project as possible with them, including research design and analysis, recommendation development, influencing and creative outputs. Save the Children are leading work with this group. 

2. Stakeholder Advisory Group – consisting of representatives from 8 organisations with expertise relevant to young mothers’ employment and tackling in-work poverty. Members of this group include: One Parent Families Scotland, Young Women’s Movement, Poverty Alliance, STUC, Scottish Women’s Aid, Home Start, University of West of Scotland, and Coalition for Racial Equality and Rights. 

The project, which began in June 2025, is currently in its first phase – gathering evidence on young mothers’ labour market experiences and employer attitudes. This research phase is expected to last until early 2026. In phase two:  

• Research findings will inform a series of recommendations for Scottish Government, public bodies and employers.  
• We’ll use these recommendations to shape targeted advocacy on the actions needed to increase young mothers’ access to good quality work. 
• Employers will play a key role in developing and testing resources that enable organisations to build workplaces that support young mothers to reach their full potential. 
• Young mothers will work with us to develop a campaign to raise awareness of their employment rights.  

“This work is a movement towards equity, dignity and opportunity…led by young mums and backed by lived experience.” - Member of the Mums’ Project Advisers Group 

Recent activity and what comes next 

The Mums’ Project Advisers Group recently had their first meeting. The day was a fantastic opportunity for members to meet each other and the project team. It also served as an introduction to the project and the ways members could shape elements such as research design, influencing policymakers, and campaign development. 

“Changing the narrative of assumptions others have of young mums is such an important role to me. I hope this project can support in that.” - Member of the Mums’ Project Advisers Group 

As our research gets underway over the coming months, we look forward to developing our understanding of young mothers’ labour market experiences and the changes required to address the barriers they face. This partnership project will help to ensure that lived experience drives our approach to improving job quality and influencing meaningful change for young mothers. 

We hope to be able to share our learning so far in early 2026. You’ll be able to find updates on the project here on the Close the Gap blog.