ABSTRACT
We in these islands live on our wits. That is to say, the natural resource upon which we most depend for our economic wellbeing is the intelligence, ingenuity and adaptability of the people who work. More precisely, we do not live upon all our wits, but on somewhere between a half and two-thirds of them. Those wits which are to be found in female heads are largely ignored by industry, commerce and the professions. Women make up over half the population and a fast-growing third of the labour force. They are, however, excluded from, or conditioned to think themselves unsuitable for, positions of skill or authority. For too long jobs have been classified either as 'men's' or 'women's' work rather than as that · of the individual best fitted for the purpose regardless of sex.
