Female employees who gain experience of working overseas have stated that they believe doing so helps their career prospects.

This is according to a poll by NatWest International Personal Banking, which found 83 per cent of women questioned stated this was the case.

Respondents also declared that working abroad had either met or exceeded their expectations of foreign jobs, with the most popular countries for UK expatriates on temporary work contracts including the US, Canada and Australia.

However, 58 per cent stated they believe cultural rules around the world are applied more often to female workers than to their male counterparts.

The most popular industries for women employed in different countries around the world included banking and finances, marketing and retailing and publishing.

"For women looking to fast track to promotion, moving abroad could be an option for them," NatWest International Personal Banking head Dave Isley said.

Recent data from the Office for National Statistics showed that an increase among redundancies for women pushed up the number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance in the UK during the three months to May this year.

Posted by Lee Thrace