‘What Do You Need to Make It as a Woman in This Industry? Balls!’: Work Placements, Gender and the Cultural Industries

Higher Education (HE) is an important route into the cultural sector and published figures suggest that there is no shortage of women coming through the HE pipeline: women make up 60 per cent of the student population on HE courses aligned with the cultural sector in the UK (ECU, 2011). However, women represent 38 per cent of the UK cultural industries’ workforce (Skillset and Creative and Cultural Skills, 2011), below the UK labour market average of 46 per cent. Female representation varies significantly by sub-sector and occupational group but with markedly significant gender segregation across the sector: for example, in the audio-visual industries, 87 per cent of the workforce in make-up, hair and costume are female, yet women comprise only a very small minority in technical roles (Skillset, 2006). Despite being more highly qualified than their male counterparts, women earn less (Skillset and Creative and Cultural Skills, 2011) and are less likely to be found in top positions (Holden and McCarthy, 2007). Concurrently, workforce diversity agendas within the UK cultural sector have sought to increase female representation and progression.1