An interesting article in the Observer about how women will be bearing the brunt of this recession: To the many thousands of female workers who have lost their jobs the recession may well look like a case of highly-paid men creating a mess, and low-paid women suffering the consequences. Women at work: the numbers • In the UK 53,000 women lost their jobs in the year to October 2008. The employ...

Yesterday Harriet Harman invited me and women from all over the country in key positions to 11 Downing Street for a session on 'Women and the Recession'. My table, led by Tessa Jowell, were just fantastic – and we examined and tested and trailed ideas on what and how to help women as the recession bears down on their lives. So many good and wise voices contributing to the body of knowledge on wh...

The impact of the recession on women is still being discussed. The debate that started in January goes on, and despite the media misreporting earlier this year it’s good to see that conversations remain focused on how the specific challenges that women will face during the recession can be...

This is interesting: Harriet Harman, the women’s minister, said: “There is a major fear about women being targeted by their employers during the downturn. This is unlawful.” Another senior minister said women could be set back for “a generation”. The latest official employment statistics show that the number of women in full-time work fell by 53,000 in

Marking International Women's Day 2009, Jean Lambert MEP assesses the impact of the economic downturn on women This Sunday is International Women’s Day and as we enter headlong into recession we need to understand and act on the far-reaching impacts of the economic downturn on women. The impulse to dedicate a day in the spring to campaigning, celebration and reflection for women can be trace...

The Fawcett Society on Wednesday 4th March, published a report called ‘Are women bearing the burden of the recession?' which calls on the government to take urgent action to counter the impact of the recession on women. The report sets out a five point plan that promotes women's rights and economic recovery.

Our Women and Recession report has been widely reported. But unfortunately much of the reporting has been wrong. According to the many sources we believe that women will face more job losses than men. This is absolutely not what our analysis shows. The point in publishing the report was to...

Well - the debate in Parliament yesterday on support for women during the economic downturn went pretty much as you might expect. We all (cross party) made contributions highlighting the differential impact the recession will have on women (and it will) whilst being very careful to acknowledge the pain that will hit everyone. From domestic violence, to bailiffs, child care, discrimination in not g...

I thought that I’d provide a bit of an update on what new figures and analysis show us about how women are faring during the recession. Since our first report we have had two new sets of unemployment figures. It remains true that unemployment rates are increasing for both women and men. From...

Women should see the recession as an opportunity to show how valuable they can be in at work, Cherie Blair tells the BBC.