For "Who would be a woman?", read: "Who would be a mother?" On the same day the National Institute for Clinical Excellence criticised doctors and midwives for failing to spot depression in new mothers, a government-commissioned report suggested mothers have ample justification for feeling blue. Three decades after the Sex Discrimination Act, the Equalities Review yesterday reported women with young children face more discrimination in the jobs market than any other group, including the disabled and ethnic minorities. A woman with a child under 11 is 45% less likely to be working than her partner. Only lone mothers fare worse. By contrast, fathers face no discernible employment penalty.

For "Who would be a woman?", read: "Who would be a mother?" On the same day the National Institute for Clinical Excellence criticised doctors and midwives for failing to spot depression in new mothers, a government-commissioned report suggested mothers have ample justification for feeling blue. Three decades after the Sex Discrimination Act, the Equalities Review yesterday reported women with young children face more discrimination in the jobs market than any other group, including the disabled and ethnic minorities. A woman with a child under 11 is 45% less likely to be working than her partner. Only lone mothers fare worse. By contrast, fathers face no discernible employment penalty.

Several factors feed into these shocking figures. Many mothers, especially of pre-school children, have made the choice to stay at home. Then there is a grey area in which mothers might consider returning to work but find the cost of childcare prohibitive. Finally, there are those keen to work but who cannot find jobs. One recent survey revealed more than 70% of recruitment agencies have been asked to avoid hiring pregnant women or those of childbearing age. This points to a conundrum, which is that as maternity rights improve, employers are increasingly inclined to avoid employing women who are likely to have families, an observable feature in Scandinavia for some time.

The Labour government is right to claim it has done more than any other to help women achieve a viable work-life balance: the right to request flexible working, the extension of paid maternity leave, the introduction of Working Tax Credits, an increase in childcare places, the New Deal for lone parents. All push in the right direction but the central fact remains that mothers will never get a fair deal in the workplace until fathers take a bigger share of parenting. The Work and Families Act, due to come into force in April, introduces a father's right to request up to 26 weeks unpaid paternity leave. Will this be the start of a childcare revolution or a damp squib? That will depend on whether managers can accept that bringing up children matters to the whole of society and whether fathers who say they want to be more involved in childcare are not just spouting politically-correct rhetoric.

For lone parents, the issue is more complex because society is pulling them in two directions simultaneously. There is a lot of talk about parents "being there" for their children, at the same time as lone parent policy is almost wholly focused on getting them out to work. Two things would help them and mothers in general. More companies must be persuaded that offering flexible working benefits them as well as their employees. However, the British Chambers of Commerce are right to maintain that flexible working is little use while the cost of good quality childcare remains a significant barrier. We need to resolve these issues, not just because mothers deserve a fair deal but because we all stand to benefit.