ABSTRACT
Britain is unique in Europe for being the only country in which female unemployment is lower than male unemployment. This chapter begins with a summary of the literature on women and unemployment. It provides an empirical overview of the distribution of unemployment in Britain. The chapter examines gender differences and also takes into account growing differences among women, in order to identify the major factors structuring the labour market. Callender argues that in many ways women’s experience of unemployment mirrors that of men in terms of loss of social contact, status and impact on income and poverty. In 1991 about a third of married women who were registered as unemployed received neither unemployment benefits nor means-tested income support. While for men the European model continues to be more relevant, arguably women’s labour, particularly through female part-time work, is leading the way towards a more American model.
