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8 May 2025

ACT parent company Bira has welcomed the Bank of England's decision to reduce interest rates from 4.5% to 4.25%, calling it a "much-needed boost" for the retail sector, including for cycling...

8 May 2025

ACT parent company Bira has responded to the news that the 144-year-old Beales department store is staging a "Rachel Reeves Closing Down Sale" in its final weeks of trading, with giant yellow...

2 May 2025

Could the UK cycling industry be showing signs of renewed momentum? Following a challenging period marked by falling sales and overstocked inventories, overall trends and sales figures from...

2 May 2025

The Netherlands is set to legalise electric scooters and other light electric vehicles on public roads from July 2025, provided they are registered and display a license plate.

30 Apr 2025

The ACT has welcomed the announcement of a parliamentary inquiry into e-bike products not meeting safety regulations, which has been launched “in context of dangerous low-quality e-bike...

29 Apr 2025

Edinburgh has been named the UK’s top city for bike commuting, with 10.00% of its workforce choosing to cycle to work, according to new research.

28 Apr 2025

The Labour Government’s new Employment Rights Bill is set to be in force this year and the new regulations will impact high street retailers up and down the country.

25 Apr 2025

ACT parent company Bira welcomes the Chancellor's announcement of plans to create a level playing field for British businesses against unfair international trade practices.

15 Apr 2025

Retail Crime Remains Alarming - Bira's Latest Survey Reveals Urgent Need for Action

11 Apr 2025

Bira has cautiously welcomed the Prime Minister's announcement this week on plans to put 'thousands of Bobbies back on the Beat' with a new neighbourhood policing guarantee.

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Female employment hit hard as online shopping grows

Posted on in Business News , Cycles News

Retail An ongoing increase of high street shop closures across the UK means that female employment contuniues to decline.

According to a recent study undertaken by the Royal Society For the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, about 75,000 jobs as sales assistants or checkout operators previously taken by women have gone between 2011 to 2018, and 33,000 jobs were lost by men. However, the study showed that male employment has remained steady due to an increase in jobs in warehouses and as delivery drivers.

Rowan Conway, RSA director of innovation explained the reasoning for this "The traditional female skills of caring, welcoming and being customer service driven are lost when you are behind the wall of a logistics company or an Amazon warehouse."

Research undertaken by the Resolution Foundation shows that these job losses are part of an ongoing problem whereby female employee jobs in the retail industry has fallen from 16% in 1996 to 11% in 2018.

Sophie Walker, chief executive of the Young Women's Trust which supports under-30s, said "The government has tied itself in knots to respond to charges that technology is decimating men's jobs, its response to this latest assessment is pitiful in comparison to the millions set aside to prevent closures of car factories and other male-dominated industries." 

This news is unsurprising as another report investigating the retail industry showed that a fifth of UK retail spending is now carried out online and this being predicted to double in the coming years. However, previous reports have not shown how unevenly this is affecting the UK in terms of not only gender, but also area. The RSA found that the biggest job losses in sales and customer service occupations came in the East Midlands, the North East and in the East of England. Meanwhile, there was a 16% increase in the number of retail jobs in London between 2011 and 2018.

It is vital that we continue to support our local independent stores in order to help our communities and local economies and prevent job losses. Initiatives such as the Best Small Shops competition help to champion independent retailers and promote them across the UK. The Best Small Shops competition is now closed for entries but stay up to date with the Indie Retail Twitter, Facebook and Instagram pages for when the shortlisted 25 shops are announced in October!

 

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