European Review Issue 40 page 5

After numerous reports and much research both in the UK and the EU generally, it cannot be news to anyone that women earn less than men. Now the Commission has had another go at examining the gender pay gap and proposing actions to improve things.

IN THE EUROPEAN REVIEW ISSUE 34 we outlined the 'Roadmap for Equality Between Men and Women 2006-10’ which was a wide ranging attempt by the EU Commission to promote gender equality. One of its main aims however was the elimination of the pay differential which a report, published at the same time, estimated at 15%. One and a half years later things have not improved and the Commission has decided to re-iterate the problem and try to point the way towards its resolution.
‘Tackling the pay gap between women and men’ analyses the reasons for the discrepancy. While there is blatant discrimination, the document details more ‘hidden’ factors. These can include job segregation when women are concentrated in the public sector health and education fields and under-represented in financial services. In the latter the famous ‘glass ceiling’ applies as women stay near the bottom of a wage structure which hugely rewards those in decision-making positions. Stereotypes and tradition can lead to physical strength being more highly prized than inter-personal skills where women and men have broadly similar qualifications, thus a storekeeper may earn more than a cashier. Responsibility for work at home among couples is still overwhelmingly unbalanced; on average even a woman who works full-time spends 24 hours on unpaid tasks per week as opposed to the 7 hours that fall to the man. This leads to a greater proportion of female employment in part-time jobs (33% compared to 8% for men) and greater use of career breaks, both hampering career development.
Having detailed the problem the report moves on to consider how it might be reduced, ‘not possible … if we do not help out more at home’ according to Employment Commissioner ·pidla, if not solved. Apart from men doing more work around the house the Commissioner identifies four main areas for action: ensuring better application of existing legislation, using Member States’ employment strategies with EU funding, promoting equal pay among employers and involving unions and employers in exchanging good practice.

Equal pay for equal work

The original treaty which founded what is now the EU in 1957 stipulated that men and women should receive equal pay for equal work. A 1975 directive and a body of case law having failed to remedy matters, the report recommends greater publicity to inform people of their rights such as not to be discriminated against, positive action to attract women into sectors of the economy where they are lacking and possible new laws to ensure work/life balance.
The European Strategy for Growth and Jobs includes reducing the pay gap as a guideline but the report rues the fact that only two countries have set targets for this and that statistics are often late and inconsistent, urging Member States to make use of the European Social Fund.
The Commission argues that employers should adopt equal pay, not only for ethical reasons, but to unlock the potential of their staff. Corporate Social Responsibility should also be used as a lever to encourage them. Also national public authorities can play a part by making sure that the pay gap is reduced among their own employees and by firms that they contract to provide services.
As regards the social partners, the report praises their 2005 ‘Framework of Actions on Gender Equality’ signed by European employers and unions. ETUC General Secretary John Monks welcomed the Commission’s initiative while stressing the importance of collective bargaining. Given that girls consistently do better at school than boys and women now account for 60% of those leaving university it is to be hoped that these plans will change Mr. špidla’s ‘absurd situation’.

Reports mentioned in this article can be found in the internet at the following web addresses:

Roadmap for Equality Between Men and Women 2006-10	http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=COM:2006:0092:FIN:EN:HTML
Tackling the pay gap between women and men	http://ec.europa.eu/employment_social/news/2007/jul/genderpaygap_en.pdf
Framework of Actions on Gender Equality	http://www.etuc.org/IMG/pdf/framework_of_actions_gender_equality_010305-2.pdf

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