Time to end systemic misogyny reflected in the gender pay gap

News: Prevailing gender pay gap in developed and developing economies

What is the situation wrt gender pay inequity?

In a pre-pandemic world, UN Women stated that “women only make 77 cents for every dollar earned by men“, resulting in lifelong income inequality.

An International Labour Organization policy brief in July 2021 drew attention to the pandemic’s gendered impact on the global labour market, with women’s employment down 4.2%, compared to 3% for men.

The WEF’s Global Gender Gap Report 2021 aired pessimism, saying that the gender pay gap is likely to further widen by 5%.

As per PayScale’s State of the Gender Pay Gap Report 2022,

– Women pay a “motherhood penalty” and suffer from an uncontrolled pay gap of $0.74 for every dollar earned by a male parent, which over the years, shrinks to $0.88 on the dollar. This suggests that women without children face fewer social barriers in securing higher-paying jobs.

India’s case

As per the Oxfam report of 2019

– The country’s gender pay gap is about 34%.

According to ADP Research Institute’s study, People at Work 2021: A Global Workforce View,

– only 65% of women in India received a pay rise or bonus for taking on extra responsibilities or a new role, compared to 70% of men. This, despite the fact that men and women were just as likely to take on such additional or new responsibilities to help employers deal with the covid fallout.

What are the reasons behind the inequity?

A recent Pew Research Centre’s study showed that one of the reasons for the gender pay gap in the US was women workers’ lack of work experience, as they mostly leave the workforce for unpaid care work.

Should gender pay gap be fixed?

Yes.

The cost of doing nothing to fix gender disparity would be high. Taking action, as McKinsey estimated, could add $13 trillion to world gross domestic product (GDP) by 2030 over a “do nothing” scenario.

What are some global and domestic efforts to address the issue?

The Code on Wages Act, 2019, prohibits gender discrimination in matters related to wages and recruitment.

– However, many legal experts have opined that since it doesn’t provide a single dispute resolution forum it could lead to confusion over redressal.

The World Bank’s Women, Business and The Law 2021 report said that around 190 economies had undertaken some reforms in laws and regulations that restricted women’s economic opportunities.

– Countries like Bahrain, Montenegro, Saudi Arabia and Vietnam eliminated restrictions on women working in jobs previously deemed dangerous for them.

The EU has launched a Gender Equality Strategy 2020-25, identifying key areas of labour-market reforms.

The world also celebrates International Equal Pay Day (IEPD), which began in 2020 under the United Nations’ banner.

Way forward

Pay inequity is a result of a systemic flaw deeply embedded in socio-cultural norms. Hence, as countries seek to re-build their pandemic-ravaged economies, focus must be on gender justice for the sake of a more optimally productive world.

Source: This post is based on the article “Time to end systemic misogyny reflected in the gender pay gap” published in Livemint on 20th June 22.