Nearly two out of five employees prefer female to male bosses because they feel they are both more understanding and more assertive. Cath Everett reports.

According to a survey among 1,182 UK workers undertaken by HR consultancy Reabur, only 29% preferred having a male as their manager, while a third thought gender was irrelevant.

Of those polled, just over three out of five had a male manager, just under a quarter a female one and 11% had both. But only just under one in five respondents believed that they had a good relationship with their male boss compared with 28% who were on good terms with a female counterpart.

In three out of five cases where respondents preferred a female boss, meanwhile, it was because they were considered more understanding. Some 38% felt more comfortable discussing personal issues with a female leader, while 21% felt intimidated by a male superior compared with only 12% of women managers.

Georgina Read, co-founder of Reabur, said: "I can understand that some would find it easier to confide in a women or man, but I think it's just a personal preference. A boss is a person who should always be approachable and it's important that all managers handle sensitive situations gracefully and discretely."

But a 51% of those questioned also felt that female bosses were more organised and just over a quarter believed they were more assertive.

On the other hand, some 43% felt that male managers were more capable in the workplace, while 51% said that they respected their male boss. The same applied to only 42% of female superiors, however.