Females dominate employment in education, especially in primary and secondary education. Currently they account for around 70% of employment in the sector. Trends in the sector related to gender issues in further and higher education include:

• the share of women working in the education sector is expected to rise
• the number of men employed in this sector is projected to decline slightly
• 48% of the HE workforce is male compared to 52% female
• proportionally fewer women than men are found in the higher salary grade in HE
• 60% of the FE workforce is female and 40% is male
• 69% of women are in part-time employment positions in FE

Source: Working Futures 2004, HE and FE Sector Report 2002, FEnto 2002 and HESDA 2002

Employment levels in education by gender and status, 2002-2012

Table shows the number employed in education by gender and employment status for 2002, 2007 and 2012.