Engendering Justice - from Policy to Practice - The Fawcett Society

Chapter Five:Justice Needs WomenWomen as Workers in the Criminal Justice SystemI work four days a week as a District Judge. It is reasonablyeasy to do at the District Bench because most casesare short. I gather that it is very difficult if not impossibleto work less than 5 days a week at the higher end of thejudiciary, although personally I cannot see why if someoneis a circuit judge, for example, they cannot sit for 4 days aweek with cases lasting longer than 4 days having a dayoff on the Friday.Female Judge, Questionnaire Response, February 2009Judges were also concerned about how individuals weresimply allocated to a particular location without consultationand the problems this could present for women with youngchildren:I do think that a more transparent system for allocatingjudges to particular locations and areas of work and soon would be an improvement, so that one could actuallylook at the criteria being applied and assess for oneselfwhether they are fair or not. 249While another Judge told the Commission:It would be much more helpful if on first appointmentmore regard was had to childcare commitments and soon, with a dialogue about where one would prefer to sitrather than just being told where it was to be. 250I can see that it causes problems with those who haveyounger children and who may be sent to a distant courton a regular basis. Appointing women with children closerto home if they desired would assist.Female Judge, Questionnaire Response, February 2009The JAC has much work to do. For as Dame Hazel notes,the perception of the judiciary as a male-dominatedenvironment with limited support and female role models isunlikely to change until women are appointed to the HighCourt in sufficient numbers. 251MagistratesThe Commission received some important input fromwomen volunteering as Magistrates. Given the voluntarynature of this commitment, issues such as careerprogression are not relevant. However, the responsesrevealed a number of key themes which reflected theconcerns of women working within other criminal justiceagencies.Time-based concerns were common for Magistrateswith children, especially in relation to late sittings. As oneMagistrate told the Commission:I feel that the pressure to attend bench meetings,chairman’s meetings and training sessions on top of mysittings shows a failure to recognise the demands alreadymade on my time as a busy working wife and mother. 252It was also noted that the change from half day sittingallocation to an all day allocation basis in some court areasmade it more difficult for parents needing to pick children upfrom school. This is exacerbated by the inability to predictfinishing time:I am sure that females with children or carers find itdifficult to predict home time. Courts are also so busywith so much extra reading to do for staff and so muchchange that a day is often too intense to fit into reducedhours. 253There were also concerns that given childcare andemployment obligation restrictions, there were far more JPsof retirement age than of working age. Many respondentsrecommended that there was a need for childcarereimbursement (which is provided by the Courts) to be morewidely publicised beyond the website and the applicationform, so that young women are aware of this benefit andmight be more likely to apply.When I first entered the community room it was like goingback 100 years, there was from the very start a feeling ofdiscrimination against female magistrates and the “jobsfor the boys“ mentality. I felt like a second class citizen,still do, and nothing seems to have changed since I wasappointed almost three years ago. I still feel apprehensivewhen entering the room hoping there are other friendlyfemale magistrates there. You are sometimes completelyignored on the bench, especially when sitting with twomale colleagues when trying to discuss a case.Female Magistrate, Questionnaire Response, March 2009Page 76