Young women are struggling to rise above a “sticky floor” at work amid a gulf in financial confidence between them and young men that leaves one in four clinging to jobs they don’t enjoy, research suggests. British women aged 18 to 30 are worrying more about money, are more likely to feel their financial situation is getting worse, and more likely to be unable to afford food or other essentials than young men of the same age, according to a survey of about 5,000 young people, shared with the Guardian. The snapshot of divergent financial fortunes for the two sexes comes despite progress in closing the pay gap for older women and more women breaking through glass ceilings at work, said Claire Reindorp, the chief executive of Young Women’s Trust, which carried out the study.
Last year, the largest increase in the gender pay gap was among employees aged 30 to 39 years, where it increased from 2.3% to 4.7%, official figures show .
Reindorp said: “The problem for young women is the sticky floor. [At a young age] they get sorted into retail, care, hospitality and into low pay and they can’t get out of it.” Young women are also more likely to have taken on new debt in the last 12 months than young men and save less, the research carried out in July and August found.
The gulf between the sexes on work and finances was revealed to be stark in several areas: 41% of young women said their financial situation has worsened over the last 12 months, compared with 27% of young m.
