Over 60% of employees in retail are women.  Over 40% of all employees in the sector are women who work part-time.  This means the sector is largely characterised by part-time female employees, with this pattern forecast to continue.

Women working in retail full-time still earn on average 25% less per hour than men.  Women who work part-time in the sector earn 46% less per hour than men who work full-time in retail. 

Only 12% of women in the sector work at managerial levels, compared with 28% of men, even though women account for over 60% of the workforce.

Source: Usdaw 2003 and Harris and Church 2002