Accelerating Gender Equality

“This Assembly celebrates International Women’s Day on the 8th March, to celebrate the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women and as a call to action for accelerating gender equality.

This Assembly notes that there are over four million women and girls in London who still face specific challenges with regards to employment, poverty, discrimination and safety. Women are vulnerable to poverty, partly as a result of the gender pay gap and unequal caring responsibilities.

Women are less likely to be employed and on average earn less than men with the gender pay gap in London currently 11.9 per cent. Analysis by Trust for London in 2016 showed the biggest group among the low paid were the 220,000 female part-time employees who make up 31 per cent of the total. Of the low paid jobs in London, 58 per cent are carried out by women. A recent report by the London Assembly Economy Committee found that gender stereotypes remain strong in apprenticeships and that no women undertook a higher level apprenticeship in either construction or engineering in 2015/16.

This Assembly recognises that violence against women and girls remains an important issue for many Londoners and includes physical, sexual and psychological/emotional violence, economic abuse and sexual exploitation. In the year to September 2016 there were over 151,000 recorded domestic offences in London, of which three in four victims were female. During the same time period, there were 17,148 reported sexual offences, of which almost nine in ten victims of sexual offences were female.

This Assembly welcomes the Mayor’s pledge to be a proud feminist in City Hall and calls on the Mayor to celebrate International Women’s Day and the achievements of London’s women and girls.

This Assembly calls on the Mayor to work with London’s businesses, Transport for London (TfL) and the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) to ensure that London is a city in which women are safe from violence and sexual harassment; and to challenge stereotypes and work towards ensuring that economic barriers are removed to allow all Londoners to prosper equally, regardless of gender.”