Feminist myths 'are making equality laws unfair to men'

Further sex equality legislation should be stopped because it is unfair to men, according to an analysis published by a Labour think tank.



The idea that all women at work are victims of discrimination is a 'feminist myth', argued a senior academic. Many want to raise families rather than pursue careers.



'The myth that all or most women would be just as careerist as men, if only they were given the opportunity, has been exploded,' Dr Catherine Hakim said.



While women can choose between work and family, men have fewer choices, a senior academic said

'The trend towards flexibility in the workforce has also made it clearer that some occupations and jobs will never be family friendly.'

The call from Dr Hakim will provoke unease among ministers and Labour MPs because it has been published by the Institute for Public Policy Research, the party's most influential think tank over the past decade.



Business Secretary Peter Mandelson is already thinking about whether to push on with planned new family-friendly laws next spring because of their impact on small businesses.



However, the Government's Equality Commission and feminist ministers are determined to bring in laws to combat what they see as widespread prejudice against women workers.

Dr Hakim, a senior research fellow at the London School of Economics, said: 'The most misleading feminist myth is that women are united in their goals and priorities.



'Around one quarter of women - and men - now remain childless, mostly by choice, and their interests and priorities differ substantially from those of parents.



'I predict that men will continue to dominate in the workforce and public life while women will continue to dominate in family life, even in the absence of sex discrimination, because there are some residual differences in tastes, values and lifestyle choices that have a cumulative impact.'



In a direct challenge to the official Whitehall view, she declared: 'So why do feminists continue to demand a strengthening of gender equality laws?



'Largely because feminists continue to manufacture myths about women's oppression.'



Dr Hakim said that while women could choose between work and family, men had fewer choices. 'Perhaps equality legislation should address this imbalance,' she said