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Bosses ‘avoid hiring mums’

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Published Date: 05 March 2008
RESEARCHERS have claimed employers shy away from hiring women with young children.
Napier University academics found that, although small and medium-sized companies actually prefer to hire women, the opposite is true when they have primary school-aged youngsters.

Professor Ronald McQuaid, of the Employment Research Institute, said: “For these employers, it is not gender that is the issue, but women having young children.

“There were many positive cases where employers had overcome some previous misperceptions and worries about the flexibility of parents with young children and found them to be reliable staff.”





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  • Last Updated: 05 March 2008 9:25 AM
  • Source: Edinburgh Evening News
  • Location: Edinburgh
  • Related Topics: Women and work
 
1

Proximaking,

Dundee 05/03/2008 17:42:27
And I suppose taxpayers money was spent on this "research." It's common knowledge that it happens and it has nothing to do with gender and everything to do with taking days off with sick kids etc. And so wherever possible an employer should avoid hiring anyone of whatever gender who has young kids. And nothing can be done about this. As Alan Sugar said recently he doesn't even bother interviewing women for many positions now because he isn't allowed to ask them whether they have kids and what child minding arrangements they have, some of which would be suitable and some not had he been allowed to ask. And to those who say "you can't do that!" They almost certainly work for local government or whatever where 10% sickness levels are the norm and so no-one notices but in real jobs people do notice because if someone is skiving off looking after "their lifestyle choices" (children) some other mug, usually a man with a wife and kids of his own, has to cover for them. As someone once said to me in explaining this situation "If you decide to go off surfing as a lifestyle choice for five years and then take a couple of days off at random every month to go surfing, how long do you think they'd keep you on?" Why should people with young children be treated any differently when their lifestyle choices interfere with a company doing what it does? If you decide to have kids then one of you should stay at home with the kids and if that means foregoing holidays, three TVs, expensive cars, meals out then that is just tough, your kids should come first because they have no choice in the matter, but you and your partner did.
2

reiny,

Luton 05/03/2008 22:44:50
too right, i agree with what the person said to Proximaking,Dundee you became a parent ACT LIKE IT- then the government comes up with schemes like 'wrap around' care and day care centres- parents will no longer be parents and children will be institionalised- back to the childrens homes era- this country is going mad!

 

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