International Gender Wage Gaps - Report Example

PROJECT – INTERNATIONAL GENDER WAGE GAPS Throughout the history of mankind, in cultures around the world, women have been considered inferior to men and accorded fewer rights and lower social status than men. They have been confined to the traditional role of wife and mother. In many developing countries in Africa and Asia, women are segregated and heavy cultural restrictions and social stigmas handicap their participation in economic activities. They face numerous injustices. Large factories of industries like food processing, textiles, and electronics employ thousands of women who are given low pay and poor working conditions. These women are expected to deliver high productivity and blind obedience to company regulations. The scenario though much brighter in the case of developed industrialized nations is still far from satisfactory. For my project, I have analyzed the policies and existing gender wage gaps of the United Kingdom, which can be considered as one of the foremost developed countries of the world. Gender wage gaps basically refer to the difference in hourly earnings of women as compared to men. “Women who work full time are paid on average just 87.4 percent of men’s hourly earnings, using median.” (Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2005). On 11 September 2006, the UK government had set out an action plan to minimize the gender wage gaps and promote gender equality. The salient features of the action plan are as follows: * £500K fund to support initiatives to increase availability of quality part-time work. * Minister of Women will champion quality part-time work across the public sector. * Public sector gender duty- obligation on public sector to promote gender equality. * National standards for careers advice to ensure all young people receive career information, advice and guidance which is free from gender stereotyping. * More detail on the £40m for initiatives on women’s skills and training as announced in Budget 2006. The Work and Families Act 2006 which comes into force in 2007 extends the right to request flexible working hours for those who have to look after elderly parents, disabled spouses, etc. The Public Sector Gender Duty on Equality which also comes into effect in 2007 requires public authorities to eliminate unlawful discrimination under Equal Pay Act and Sex Discrimination Act. (Government Action Plan. Implementing the Women and Work Commission Recommendations. 2006). The action plan details measures, in my opinion have far reaching impact in minimizing the gender wage gaps. First of all, let us analyze the possible causes of this gender pay gap. Causes of the gender pay gap Difference in work experience - Women are more likely to take breaks from their career to look after their children, or address household needs. This will influence their level of work experience and in turn their pay rate. Many women work part-time, but part-time work is mostly concentrated in less well-paid occupations. In order to cope with their multidimensional tasks of wife, mother and career woman, many women resort to part-time work. Most women travel less compared to men because of having to balance work with home responsibilities. This means that they have a smaller choice of jobs to select from (nearer their home location), settling for a second grade choice. Most well paying jobs entail more frequent commuting. Occupational Segregation-women seek employment in certain sectors in large numbers, these are generally lower paid than those fields that men choose. For example, engineering and business are highly paid professions but less chosen by women. Gender Bias – Women are perceived to be more interested in their family life than their career and their work input is evaluated on a prejudiced basis. Often women who return to the workplace after having looked after their children find it difficult to regain a job that matches their educational expertise, since they have lost out on the much valued work experience. Thus they settle for part-time jobs that do not need much expertise. But this results in under-use of the potential of a huge percentage of the UK labor market. This signals a loss in productivity and is not good news for the UK economy. The UK government had already brought in legislation to tackle the problem of disparities in wages among male and female employees. The Equal Pay Act 1970 declared the practice of discrimination between males and females in terms of pay and work conditions unlawful in the event of both doing equivalent work. The Act also made it clear that comparison could be made only with a person of the opposite sex. At the time the Act was passed in 1970, the pay gap between men and women was 37%. (A Guide to the Equal Pay Act 1970. 2005). It is important to note that the equal pay act also extends this privilege to all other benefits like company car, health care, redundancy payments, bonus, etc. Employers can get over this act if they can prove that the difference in pay is because of a factor other than gender. It is important to introduce measures like flexible working conditions, childcare facilities in workplace like crèches, encouraging women to venture into job sectors currently under-represented by women like management sector. This can be done only with government support. Equal pay reviews are also beneficial. Equal pay review is a systematic examination of men and women are paid for their work in an organization. It compares and identifies any differences in gender wages and analyses the reasons for it. If the cause is found to be gender bias steps are taken to eliminate the wage gaps. The result of such a pay review taken by every undertaking would be a just system where men and women are given equal opportunity and equal pay. Equal pay reviews boost a woman’s confidence and gives incentive to work harder. It also helps the company improve its employee performance, women employee retention and overall morale of the staff. It is definitely desirable to have mandatory pay reviews as most private companies would shy away from conducting it citing extra financial burden. If made voluntary, few companies will go for it despite the long run advantages. Other long term measures that will eliminate gender wage gaps are to be taken at the educational level, providing good guidance to female children in choosing careers other than the stereotyped girl-jobs. Also girls from ethnic minorities like those of Asian origin despite performing well at school levels, find that they have to restrict their ambitions to the sectors with higher concentration of females. This occupational segregation is a big loss to the industry in terms of wastage of talent. Fewer women are found to set up entrepreneurial ventures compared to men. The government could collaborate with external agencies to encourage women to set up their own businesses, providing the necessary training and back up support. Basically the most important factors in reducing gender pay gap is sufficient managerial skills in making assessments, equality in the evaluation of the job requirement and individual competence. Conclusion As it is, it is a difficult task for women to strike a harmonious balance between career and family. The government can play an important role in helping women make the choice for a career and realize her potential without neglecting her familial responsibilities. Increasing woman participation in the labor market and highly paid occupations will be worth billions to the UK economy. At a time when competition is global and increasing manifold, we cannot afford to waste talent and skills due to discriminatory work practices. It is heartening to see that the UK government is taking positive measures in this regard. Works Cited Government Action Plan. Implementing the Women and Work Commission Recommendations. (2006). Women and Work Commission. Department for Communities and Local Government. Crown Copyright. Retrieved May 25, 2007, from http://www.womenandequalityunit.gov.uk/publications/wwc_govtactionplan_sept06.pdf A Guide to the Equal Pay Act 1970. (2005). Women and Equality Unity. Retrieved May 25, 2007, from http://www.womenandequalityunit.gov.uk/pay/equal_pay_act_guide_rev3.doc Women’s Work and Pay. (2006). Women and Equality Unit. Crown Copyright. Retrieved May 25, 2007, from http://www.womenandequalityunit.gov.uk/pay/index.htm Women and Work Commission. (2007). Women and Equality Unit. Crown Copyright. Retrieved May 25, 2007, from http://www.womenandequalityunit.gov.uk/women_work_commission/index.htm ICEM Women’s Bulletin No: 15. (2006). ICEM. Retrieved May 25, 2007, from http://www.icem.org/en/71-Gender-Issues/1961-ICEM-WOMEN%E2%80%99S-BULLETIN-N%C2%B0-15#Topp Yousefi, Mahmood. (1997). Economic Dimensions of Gender Inequality: A Global Perspective. Westport: Greenwood, CT. Read More