The Women and Work All Party Parliamentary Group

2019 Theme

In 2019 the Women and Work APPG’s theme will be Inclusivity and Intersectionality. Throughout its work over the past three years the APPG has recognised and highlighted the fact that women are not a homogenous group, and that a focus on gender alone can sometimes be misleading. We have heard evidence from witnesses as to how different aspects of identity such as age, race, disability, or income can affect an individual’s experience of recruitment and employment. In 2019 the APPG will seek to shine a spotlight on this intersectionality, exploring how a better understanding of the concept can support a more inclusive workplace. The group will hold a series of meetings examining best practice and solutions for improving and supporting inclusivity, seeking to understand intersectionality through the lens of employment. The programme will start with a thematic introduction, and then examine action

Previous work

In 2018 the APPG looked at How to Recruit Women for the 21^st Century, examining proposals to improve female recruitment across the employment and labour market, and has published a report on the topic. 

In 2017 the APPG conducted an inquiry looking at how the Government’s Industrial Strategy could help to deliver gender balance within the UK economy, and published its second report, Making the Industrial Strategy Work for Women.

The APPG’s first annual report, Women Returners, summarises the findings of the Group’s 2016 programme of activity. The recommendations helped to shape policy with the introduction of £5m funding for returnships in the Spring Budget. 

The Women and Work APPG provides a forum to constructively examine and debate the role that policy makers can play to deliver gender balance within the economy. It also allows Members of Parliament and interested stakeholders to examine the responsibilities of employers and explore what more is required from the private, public and third sectors to deliver the Government’s ambitions for women and work. 

Group chairs

Co-Chair Jess Phillips MP Labour, Birmingham Yardley

jessphillips.net @jessphillips   Jess Phillips has been the Labour MP for Birmingham Yardley since 2015. She has committed her life to improving the lives of others, especially the most vulnerable, and spent five years working for Women’s Aid supporting and defending women. Jess became a councillor in 2012 through the Labour Future Candidates Programme. In this role she worked tirelessly to support residents, with her work being recognised when she became Birmingham’s first ever Victims Champion.

Co-Chair Gillian Keegan MP Conservative, Chichester

www.gilliankeegan.com @gilliankeegan   Gillian was elected as the MP for Chichester in 2017. Having spent 25 years working and living abroad, working in the manufacturing, banking and IT industries, Gillian switched her focus to politics and was first elected as a local councillor in October 2014. In May 2015 she stood as a parliamentary candidate in St Helens South and Whiston, Merseyside, where she gained second place for the Conservatives for the first time. Gillian is particularly interested in improving career opportunities for school leavers and attracting more business investment. She is a great advocate for high quality apprenticeships, having started her career as an apprentice at Delco Electronics aged 16 – an opportunity which gave her the right start in life to go on and build a successful career. Information on all the group’s officers can be found here.