The TUC examined ONS statistics and found that while full-time employment accounted for all the net growth in male employment last year, full-time employment only accounted for 47% of female jobs growth.
More than half (53%) of female jobs growth is due to women taking on part-time jobs. The TUC says these roles are typically much lower paid than full-time positions.
Contributing to lower wages is the fact women in part-time work are more likely to work in low-paid sectors such as social care and cleaning, the TUC adds.
TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said: “There is a big divide between women working full-time and those working part-time, and far too many new jobs are in low-paid sectors.
“A large number of part-time women are moving in to sectors such as social care and cleaning, where wages are low and contracts are often insecure.
“Unless we create better-paid part-time and flexible work opportunities, far too few women will see any real benefit from the recovery.”
The TUC analysis comes just a few days after the publication of PwC’s annual Women in Work index, which found the UK only ranks 14th out of 27 OECD countries for women in work. The index found the UK stands 25th out of 27 for women in full-time employment, even though it places 10th for overall female labour force participation.
