'Old fashioned' views of nursing as feminine leads to low wages
29 January 2020, 08:05
Nurses in Britain are undervalued because of the view that caring is a "feminine characteristic", a report claims.
The old fashioned view has contributed to low wages and status for nurses for generations, according to researchers from the Royal College of Nursing and Oxford Brookes University.
The report said huge shortages of nurses would continue unless wages were increased.
Nurses average pay is £15.42 per hour, which is far less than the average wage of a dentist or doctor.
Roughly 90% of nurses in the UK are women.
The authors said nurses "routinely take on tasks that would have previously been the preserve of doctors" and employers are increasingly relying on their goodwill.
Dr Anne Laure Humbert, director of the Centre for Diversity Policy Research and Practice at Oxford Brookes University and one of the authors of the report, said: "Despite the growing complexity and technical nature of the work, as well as the difficult emotional labour it entails, 'old-fashioned' perceptions persist of nursing as a job carried out by women for whom caring is 'natural', thus deskilling and devaluing those involved.
"We see care as a naturally feminine skill or characteristic. This sits in direct opposition to the high level of skills and professionalisation required in contemporary nursing."
Dr Kate Clayton-Hathway, research fellow at Oxford Brookes University, said: "Nursing suffers from an image that fails to match the reality of a professional life defined by high-level technical, emotional and cognitive skills.
"This image, which is underpinned by gendered notions of nursing and nurses, will always stand in the way of any efforts to improve the standing and attractiveness of nursing as a career."
Roles that require high levels of empathy and resourcefulness are likely to become increasingly valued, the authors said, with artificial intelligence and robots likely to play a greater part in other areas.
Rachael McIlroy, RCN senior research lead, said: "This report is an important step in challenging and changing perceptions about nursing.
"In reality, nursing is a complex and skilled profession, yet too often nurses feel their voices are unheard and their value unrecognised."
