Rejected petition Stop schools using gendered language in careers advice e.g. Tradesmen

Gendered language like ‘tradesmen’ in career advice contributes to a less diverse workforce and a shortage of workers in trades.
74% of 16-18-year-olds heard ‘tradesmen’ in career advice and 42% say gender-neutral language would make them more likely to consider a career in the trades industry.

More details

'Tradesmen' isn't a true reflection of all those who work in trade professions. It’s 2022 and this needs to change; 65% of 16-18-year-olds think ‘tradesmen’ should be replaced with ‘tradespeople’ in school career advice. 52% of Brits think people should start using ‘tradespeople’ instead of ‘tradesmen’ to break down stereotypes, and 55% of UK tradespeople also think using non-gendered language is the best way to encourage people who aren’t men into the industry. Change is needed.

This petition was rejected

Why was this petition rejected?

It’s about something that the UK Government or Parliament is not directly responsible for.

We can only accept petitions about things the Government or Parliament are directly responsible for.

Decisions about what language to use when speaking to school children are a matter for individual educators and careers advisers, not the UK Government or Parliament.

We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards.

Date submitted 1 September 2022
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