Equalities and Social Justice Impacts

Studies identifying the effect of outsourcing on equalities groups.

  • Ealing Council: Putting Public Services at Risk- The record of the Conservative administration 1990-94

    Between 1990 and 1994, Ealing council under conservative control undertook an aggressive strategy of commercialising its public services, taking privatisation and commercialisation to extreme lengths and leaving a lasting legacy of unemployment, low levels of service provision and accountability, and a huge budget deficit. This report documents the devastating nature of such policies, and offers a textbook example of the risks of privatisation and externalisation of public services. Written and researched by Centre for Public Services for Ealing Unison (1994).

  • Privatization of Public Services: What does it Mean for Women? Jane Stinson, Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE)

    Briefing which discusses the impact of privatisation and contracting on women and domestic labour (2003).

  • The Case for a Positive Public Duty on Age Equality

    This report examines the operation and impact of existing public duties in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and the UK Duty on Race, specifically in light of the desirability or otherwise of a Public Duty for Age Equality either as part of a Single Equalities Act or a separate piece of legislation. It also seeks to develop an understanding of the lessons for drawing up such a Duty in light of the experience of existing Duties. (2004)

  • Promoting Gender Equality in the Public Sector Karen Escott and Dexter Whitfield, Equal Opportunities Commission, Working Paper Series No 2, 2002.

    Examines legislative and national contexts and uses several case studies to discuss the approach to gender mainstreaming in Britain and concludes by setting out the case for a public sector duty on gender.

  • The Gender Impact of CCT in Local Government: Summary Report prepared by David Perfect the Equal Opportunities Commission (original report by Centre for Public Services) (1995)

    This is a summary of a research study carried out for the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) into the gender impact of CCT in local government. The study found a number of areas where CCT had a more serious effect upon women’s employment situation than their male counterparts. This summary describes the context and methodology of the research, and presents the key findings of the report. It also contains a series of EOC policy recommendations for public bodies.

  • Why Privatizing Government Services Would Hurt Women Workers By Annette Bernhardt and Laura Dresser, Institute for Women's Policy Research, Washington DC.

    This report analyzes the implications of privatization for women workers, especially those employed in low-end occupations. Data analyzed show that women disproportionately depend on the public sector for jobs that pay decent wages and offer benefits. This is especially true for African American and Hispanic women, and for women who do not have a college education. In part, higher wages and better access to health and pension benefits in the public sector can be attributed to higher rates of union coverage. The evidence suggests that privatizing government services will have a negative impact on women workers, especially those workers who are most vulnerable.