Stating the problem

The UNIDO Project Resource Efficient and Cleaner Production in Ukraine has conducted gender survey in 2013 and gathered the following data.

Education

Educational level of women in Ukraine is quite high. It was found that 52 % of students are women, and 55 % of all graduates are women. The conclusion can be done that men more often terminate or drop their education.

There are common reasons for gender division in education and at the labour market. The highest percentage of women’s participation is in social security (79 %), health care (74 %) and services (71 %) sectors. The lowest percentage of participation of women is in military sciences (5 %) and the mechanisms and power engineering of agricultural sector (5 %), transport (15 %), and security (18 %) sector.

Engineering in Ukraine includes natural sciences (62 % female students), engineering (25 %), construction (30 %), geodesy and land management (45 %), machinery and power agricultural sector (5 %), and transport (15 %) sectors.

The lowest percentage of female students is in engineering and metalworking (12 %), naval engineering (12 %) and wood processing (12 %). Highest percentage of women involved is in textile and light industry (92 %). Chemical engineering has 61 % of female students, food industry has 66%. Metallurgy and material engineering has 29 % of female students.

Comparing with the Soviet time there is the trend of declining numbers of female students with technical education. Thus, in the 70-80-s of the XX century there were about 33 % of female students in the Soviet Union. But this trend is caused not only by gender reasons but also by economic, political reasons etc.

Moreover, gender stereotypes are an important factor for decision-making and choosing a future profession. Despite the fact that percentage of female students at the technical faculties is quite high, it reduces significantly comparing to percentage of women working in this sphere. Among the factors why women do not continue working in technical sphere, experts mentioned the following:

- female students often choose to gain technical education just because they want to have a university degree;

- women want to find a husband in technical university;

- working conditions at the factories leave much to be desired that is why women prefer not to work there;

- large enterprises are usually located in urban areas with poor living conditions and women prefer not to live and work there.

Industry

Women were not involved in industry (even food industry) till the XX century. By 1917, in Russia there were 10,800 (5 %) women in steel industry and 9600 (2 %) were in metal sector. Women were working there not for exercising their rights. The first reason was economic, and after the First World War it was motivated by employers, who lost labour force (men) in the war.

Percentage of women in industry in Soviet times was quite high and was 48 % in 1989, every year decreasing till 2012, when the percentage was 37 % in general.

Nevertheless, at all times women who worked in industry had lower salaries than men. Women in industry are usually treated as an exception, not as a rule. Nowadays the numbers are compatible, but trends have changed.

Percentage of women involved in food industry is about 47 %, in chemical industry is 44 %, and in metallurgical production is 31 %.

Difference in salary in industries is as following:

• Food industry – 79 %,
• Chemical industry – 82 %,
• Metallurgical production and ready-made metal products – 73 %.

This percentage is higher than grand average percentage and it is far from equitable distribution.