sociology paper 2 b 2

Age inequalities in work - youth (1)

The youth unemployment rate is much higher than the rate of the general population - 37% of 16-24 year olds are economically inactive.

Age inequalities in work - youth (2)

There's a mismatch between the types of jobs young people are training for and the types of jobs available, e.g. in one year almost 100,000 young people trained in hair and beauty for less than 20,000 jobs.

Age inequalities in work - youth (3)

Being young is likely to affect your employment chances as there are restrictions on when/where you can work and a lower minimum wage - 14/15 year olds can't work more than 12 hours a week, and the minimum wage at 16 is £4.20, compared to £7.38 for those over 21.

Age inequalities in work - elderly (1)

Johnson and Bytheway define ageism as the offensive exercise of power through reference to age. This can be seen in the fact that the media regularly discuss people becoming 'too old to employ'.

Age inequalities in work - elderly (2)

A MORI survey found that 38% of discrimination cases filed after 2006 put age as the reason. Link to lack of promotion and inequality in recruitment.

Age inequalities in work - elderly (3)

A MORI survey found that 1/5 workers from all age sectors told a MORI survey that they'd experienced discrimination at work. Shows how problem isn't specific to the elderly.

Age in equalities in work - retirement (1)

Jones et al argue that we now have a flexible retirement age so those who can afford to retire early tend to have higher status. There's a 'disparity of experience' of old age as those who have financial security will not grow old in the same way as those who have to work longer.

Age in equalities in work - retirement (2)

Harding saw evidence of 'two worlds' - those in the early years of retirement (active ageing) and the over 80s (isolated). This shows that old age itself isn't a universal category with shared experiences.

Age inequalities in work - retirement (3)

Ginn and Arber found that Pakistani and Bangladeshi women were the most disadvantaged in terms of pension, as they were less likely to have worked in their adult life.

Ethnic inequalities in work - unemployment (1)

In 2016 just over 4% of white people were unemployed.

Ethnic inequalities in work - unemployment (2)

The highest rate of unemployment in 2016 was found amongst Pakistanis and Bangladeshis.

Ethnic inequalities in work - employment (3)

For men, the most likely groups to work in low skilled jobs are Pakistani, Black African and Bangladeshi. For women, the most likely groups to work in low skilled jobs are Gypsy/Irish Traveller, Bangladeshi and Caribbean.

Ethnic inequalities in work - recruitment (1)

Wood et al (2009) found discrimination in favour of white names during the recruitment process - they were 29% more likely to get an interview than ethnic minorities.

Ethnic inequalities in work - recruitment (2)

Heath and Yu Cheung found evidence of the 'ethnic penalty' in recruitment, this means that when you have two candidates who are equally qualified, the fact that one is white means they're automatically advantaged.

Ethnic inequalities in work - recruitment (3)

There's evidence that ethnic minorities face 'casual racial discrimination' when they look for work through recruitment agencies as job offers tend to be skewed towards white applicants.

Ethnic inequalities in work - vertical segregation (1)

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation (2007): some ethnic minority graduates, particularly women, found it harder to get higher level positions in their jobs.

Ethnic inequalities in work - vertical segregation (2)

Battu and Sloane argue that ethnic minorities in employment are more likely to be overqualified than their white counterparts.

Ethnic inequalities in work - vertical segregation (3)

Davidson used the term 'concrete ceiling' to describe the embedded discrimination that prevents ethnic minority women from being promoted.

Ethnic inequalities in crime (1)

Shiner found that black people are 7 times more likely to be stopped and searched than whites. This links to the institutional racism embedded in the police force, uncovered by the McPherson Report.

Ethnic inequalities in crime (2)

The Muslim prison population has doubled in the last ten years, Quaishi argues that this reflects the degree to which they're under surveillance.

Ethnic inequalities in crime (3)

Black people are 5 times more likely to be murdered than whites, links to intra-racial crime.

Ethnic inequalities in education (1)

Wright (1992) found evidence of teacher racism in schools, teachers held labels of students, e.g. they believed that Asian students had a poor grasp of English so they excluded them from discussions. Consequently, children from ethnic minorities are more likely to be placed in lower sets which directly impacts their life chances.

Ethnic inequalities in education (2)

Gilbert and Youdell argue that teachers' racist assumptions led them to believe that Afro-Caribbean students would cause trouble. This shows how ethnic minorities don't have equal opportunities to succeed in the education system.

Ethnic inequalities in education (3)

Strand argued that schools were institutionally racist, this is reflected in the ethnocentric curriculum.

Gender inequalities in work - vertical segregation (1)

This refers to having access to different types of jobs which are more highly skilled and paid. For example, the Fawsett Society (2013) found that women make up 20% of financial directors, and only 11% of UK bank CEOS.

Gender inequalities in work - vertical segregation (2)

According to the Equality and Human Rights Commission at the current rate of progress it will take 70 years to see a gender equal number of directors.

Gender inequalities in work - vertical segregation (3)

There's evidence of the 'motherhood penalty' in the workplace which argues that women returning to work often go back part-time, which limits their opportunities for promotion, while allowing men to progress further and fill all the top positions.

Gender inequalities in work - horizontal segregation (1)

Women dominate in the caring sector and in leisure occupations, they represent 79% of the workforce.

Gender inequalities in work - horizontal segregation (2)

The Equal Opportunities Commission: women are over-concentrated in clerical, retail and personal services whilst men are found in skilled manual and upper professional jobs.

Gender inequalities in work - horizontal segregation (3)

This segregation is reflected in their earnings, as the typically female jobs are more likely to be low paid. The Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings found that the average men earns £102 a week more than the average woman.

Gender inequalities in work - male inequalities (1)

Health and safety data shows that more than 95% of the 200 workers killed in the workplace every year are male.

Gender inequalities in work - male inequalities (2)

ONS 2010: men in the UK work 39 hours a week on average, compared to an average of 34 hours a week for women.

Gender inequalities in work - male inequalities (3)

Benatar argues that the least desirable, most dangerous and lowest paid jobs are dominated by men.

Gender inequalities in income and wealth (1)

Low Pay Commission: approximately 70% of people in national minimum wage jobs are women.

Gender inequalities in income and wealth (2)

UK Feminista: it's estimated that each year a mother is absent from the workplace, her future wages will reduce by 5%.

Gender inequalities in income and wealth (3)

Global Citizen 2014: women comprise around half of the world's population but own only 1% of the world's wealth, yet the represent 70% of the world's poor.

Gender inequalities in crime (1)

Males are 19 times more likely to be in prison than females. OCS: males commit around 80% of all offences.

Gender inequalities in crime (2)

In Campbell's self-report study, her female sample admitted to almost as much crime as her male sample, this is evidence of Hood's chivalry thesis.

Gender inequalities in crime (3)

Women are twice as likely to be victims of domestic violence, and seven times more likely to be victims of a sexual assault. While 7/10 homicide victims are male.

Class inequalities in work - unemployment (1)

ONS figures show that the lower your social class, the more likely you are to be unemployed.

Class inequalities in work - unemployment (2)

Routine workers are more likely to face job losses, unemployment and work under zero hours contracts than professional workers, they lack job security.

Class inequalities in work - unemployment (3)

You could use the Marxist term of the 'reserve army of labour' to describe how low-skilled workers are required during 'boom' periods but during times of recession they're the first group to be let go.

Class inequalities in income and wealth (2)

The poorest 50% of the population have only 10% of the wealth of the UK between them, with many in a state of negative wealth (debt), while the richest 10% have almost 50% of the wealth.

Class inequalities in income and wealth (3) - link to poverty

The Trussell Trust: in 2014, 4.7 million people were in food poverty. The number of households defined as suffering from multiple deprivation has increased by 19% since 1983.

Class inequalities in education (1)

Fernstein argues that by the age of 3 children from working class backgrounds are behind their middle-class peers by up to 22 months.

Class inequalities in education (2)

Those from higher social classes are more likely to continue their education past age 18 and study at the most prestigious universities. For example, over a quarter of MPs attended Oxbridge.

Class inequalities in education (3)

Archer et al found that many working class children don't aspire to go to university. Furlong and Cartmel found that working class students who do go to university tend to go to the 'new' ones and when they graduate they tend to do less well in the labour market.