More than a fifth of people living in Wales are living in poverty.
This means one in every five people living in Wales do not have the resources needed to meet their basic needs. While work is still the best route out of poverty, all too often now just getting a job isn’t enough to lift someone out of poverty – over half of the people in poverty in Wales are in households where someone is bringing home a salary. If these figures aren’t shocking enough, women are even more likely to be living in poverty than men. Women are also more likely to be in low paid, insecure and part time work.
We know that women face far greater challenges than men in getting a foothold in the job market, and we also know that many women are more likely to have additional responsibilities outside of work. The Welsh Government is currently developing its new strategy for the economy, as well as a new strategy for employability. It is vital that our politicians take this opportunity to put gender at the heart of these strategies, and ensure that they empower low paid women to progress in the job market towards decent work.
Now is the time for Wales to ask itself some challenging questions. What are the changes we need to help low-paid women progress in their careers? Will these changes help women to lift themselves out of poverty? How can Wales make sure that publicly funded bodies do not support companies who are not offering decent work? Oxfam Cymru is looking to identify policies that can support low paid women either into the job market, or to progress within it towards decent work.
Oxfam Cymru is commissioning a piece of research to start to answer some of these questions. You can download the full details by clicking here before the deadline of 24 February 2017. For an informal chat about the research, please contact Rachel Cable – rcable1@oxfam.org.uk or 03002001269.