This paper evidences persistent gender inequalities in UK higher education (HE) geography departments. The two key sources of data used are: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) data for staff and students, which affords a longitudinal response to earlier surveys by McDowell and McDowell and Peake of women in UK university geography departments, and a qualitative survey of the UK HE geography community undertaken in 2010 that sought more roundly to capture respondent reflections on their careers, choices, status and experiences. Findings show that although the gender gap is closing within HE geography in the UK there are significant ongoing gender disparities. Therefore, the paper argues that the long and demanding process of reducing gender inequalities (alongside other, equally vital intersectional inequalities) requires continued commitment. Furthermore, respondents evidence the cost of these inequalities: enablers and barriers to job security and career progression can have long-term impacts on quality of life and financial security, and affect personal life decisions. In recent years the UK-based Athena Swan and Gender Equality Charter Mark agendas have prompted universities to address gendered disparities and the authors note a changing zeitgeist. The survey findings point to the need for sustained leadership within geography departments to address the day-to-day gender -and other -inequalities experienced in the workplace.The information, practices and views in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG).

While there has been a steady growth of women working in geography in UK universities since the mid-Twentieth Century, there are continuing challenges in gendered career progression and professional interactions within the contemporary discipline. These range from problems associated with employment precarity and inflexible work practices, life choices and obligations in the domestic arena, discrimination and bullying, to less tangible gendered norms and cultures in the workplace. This paper discusses these challenges and inequalities in the light of a brief overview of sector-wide statistical data on appointments by gender and career-stage and with the analysis of some 250 in-depth responses to a nationwide qualitative survey of gender and career experience in UK universities (Maddrell et al 2016). While the term 'glass ceiling' still has significant relevance, findings show a more complicated picture which also includes 'stone floors' and stumbling blocks. It also shows how career experience varies by institution and individual: challenges in career progression can be compounded by institutional protocols and intersectional factors, and vary with career stage. The intersection of early-career job precarity, reproductive decisions and associated family responsibilities were particularly highlighted in this study. These 'pinch points' in career development disproportionately affect, but are not limited to, female early career scholars. Early career progress may be stalled in mid-career in multi-staged promotional systems such as that in UK universities; some from minorities face compound barriers; men with caring responsibilities may face prejudice. The paper concludes with suggested strategies for change, highlighting the importance of individual university and department protocols and practices; line manager and other senior colleagues' attitudes and leadership in creating workplaces with an equality-driven ethos and structures that allow individuals to flourish.

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Letter to the editorThe power of collective tactics: response to Peters and Turner Dear Editor Peters and Turner (2014) raise a set of very important issues concerning the use of teachingfocused staff in higher education and how these staff navigate the situations they find themselves in. As their sensitive treatment demonstrates, these are issues that are tied to, but not identical with, wider concerns about casualisation in academic labour markets. We welcome the authors' brave and insightful use of autobiography to make this important contribution.One of the most powerful strategies they demonstrate is their collaborative response to what can feel like individual predicaments. The chance to discuss the experiences of being employed in precarious circumstances engenders a feeling of recognition and the possibility of exploring how one might belong. It also facilitates the development of those projects, such as grant writing and paper writing, which make finding more permanent jobs possible. Collaboration is an invaluable mechanism for managing to survive on temporary teaching contracts. Their paper makes as good a case as any of the importance of collegiality and solidarity with and between teaching-focused academics. It seems to be becoming normal for early career and those on nonstandard contracts to be used instrumentally (ESRC, 2012). Whilst it is a structural problem, it is something all geographers are able to challenge in our everyday working practices and relationships.There are also networks for teaching-focused staff which aim to provide collegial space outside of departments. THE GEES network (Teaching-focused in Higher Education in Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences) is one example. A LinkedIn group enables people to share information and debate about teaching and being a teacher in higher education. The network also has an annual professional development workshop. The INLT (International Network for Learning and Teaching) facilitates academic and postgraduate geographers in conversation about policy and practice in higher education geography. It is an international group that meets face to face for writing retreats and at conferences, as well as providing professional support through e-mail and sharing good practice. The Higher Education Research Group of the Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers) (RGS-IBG) provides another forum for discussing issues concerning higher education and geography, connecting those with interests in research, teaching, and learning through events and other activities.These networks facilitate teaching-focused staff in the positive contributions they make to the discipline. Moreover, these networks can provide a lifeline for people isolated in their departments. We would encourage all teaching-focused staff to become involved with these networks as a means to support, and be supported by, the community. In addition, we call on heads of departments and others to ensure that those on teaching-focused contracts are supported (financi...

In this paper we examine contemporary academic working lives, with particular reference to teaching‐only and teaching‐focused academics. We argue that intensification in the neoliberal university has significantly shifted the structure of academic careers, while cultural stories about those careers have not changed. We call for academics to re‐examine our collective stories about standard academic career paths. Challenging the stories and making visible the ways that they create and multiply disadvantage is a crucial step in expanding the possibilities for academic identities and careers. The paper begins by describing teaching‐focused academics within the context of the wider workforce. We then draw on narratives of those in these roles to illustrate the processes that (re)inscribe their marginalisation. We uncover the gendering of the teaching‐focused academic labour market. We end the paper by suggesting interventions that all academics can take and support to address the issues we highlight.