According to the latest figures from INSEE, the average salary income of women in the private sector remains 23.5% lower than that of men. For equal working hours, female employees earned on average 14.9% less than their male colleagues in 2022. A gap which has narrowed over time, particularly with the increase in the proportion of female managers (in 1995 , the rate was 22.1%).
In his book 1, the economist at the University of Paris-Ouest-Nanterre, Dominique Meurs, returns to the sources of these persistent inequalities in both the private and public sectors. Through the work of researchers, it highlights the effectiveness of certain devices.
1. The “bag of knots” of salary inequalities
For the researcher, this question is more complex than it seems. “There is sexist behavior in companies, reluctance to hire women who, moreover, have much flatter careers. But that’s not the whole story. Another part of these inequalities is linked to the supply of work: women will have to arbitrate between family and professional life because domestic responsibilities fall on them. It’s the weight of social norms. »
A new study from the Drees (Directorate of Research, Studies, Evaluation and Statistics) points out that women “are much more frequently unemployed or part-time for reasons related to children”. It is employed or working mothers who are most forced to stop working.
2. Mothers still on the front line of discrimination
The effect of motherhood on careers remains devastating. “The career break linked to parental leave keeps you out of the company for a long time. It is very difficult to compensate when you come back”underlines Dominique Meurs. « Employers could explicitly take maternity into account in evaluation and promotion procedures rather than ignoring them. »
The second cause is part-time work. “Between a single person who can stay until 9 p.m. and another part-time, there will be no photo for promotions”notes the economist, targeting in passing “institutional injustice” of the absence of school on Wednesdays, which most often forces mothers to work 80%. The career slowdown can be linked to these first two reasons but also be independent. Just by the simple fact of being a woman: “You are not going to get the position you want or you will be pushed aside in favor of a man deemed more available. »
3. Break gender orientation at school
Horizontal segregation linked to the gender orientation of studies is one of the keys to understanding the persistence of these gaps. “Men are still the majority in science prep classes and engineering schools. It’s not set in stone forever. There has been a reorientation of young women towards medicine and the judiciary. But the majority of them do not go into the disciplines that pay the most”explains Dominique Meurs.
The gender equality paradox is still relevant today: the more “developed” the countries, the more women participate in the labor market, the less they are proportionally in scientific subsidiaries than the less “developed” countries. “.
For the economist, however, there is no inevitability. “What works well to break these stereotypes are female “role models”. The experimentation of Breda, Grenet and Monnet is astonishing in this area. It shows that one hour of intervention by a researcher or a woman from the business world, in the final year of science, significantly increases the number of girls who then move on to science preparation. »
4. In this fight, a “driving” role for businesses?
Vectors of these salary inequalities, certain companies, among the largest, are however on the right track in terms of practices according to the academic: “It’s not innocent, it’s part of CSR (corporate social responsibility), of their reputation. They didn’t all convert to feminism overnight. But HR departments can be sincerely convinced to get things done. »
According to her, the recognition of paternity or parenthood, such as the possibility that the father or partner leaves earlier to pick up the baby from daycare, becomes a subject of social dialogue between management and unions, particularly in equality groups. professional. “HR must take into account non-work, family… Given the recruitment difficulties, they can no longer think that it is the employee who will adapt to the conditions offered. »
5. A glass ceiling that is difficult to break
According to Cereq (Centre for Studies and Research on Qualifications), the glass ceiling remains: women remain under-represented in management positions in Europe, 10% on average compared to 12% for men. If the economist is not completely convinced by the establishment of quotas for women, particularly on boards of directors, to reverse the trend, she nevertheless believes that “making promotion procedures clear and known to everyone works. Lots of research has shown this. For those who apply, the chances of promotion become equal to those of men.”
In the judiciary, this transparency already exists. “There, we don’t see a glass ceiling. Mentoring, by a woman or man who will give advice on the next career path, can also be useful. » “Name and shame” (giving the name of a company to denounce its practices) seems to have effects, particularly in Great Britain. Since 2018, the obligation for the 10,000 largest companies to publish salary gaps between men and women has helped to reduce them.
6. A professional equality index to be reviewed
According to the latest figures from the HCE (High Council for Equality between Women and Men), only 1% of companies are subject to the professional equality index created five years ago. “It’s an excellent idea, but it’s not a relevant indicator, explains Dominique Meurs. Because it is poorly constructed, it excludes, for example, bonuses (such as post and night shift bonuses) in the calculation of income when, very often, they will widen the gaps. In the energy sector, if you take the base salary, there is almost no gap. If you take total compensation, including bonuses, you will find a gap of 10 to 20% because men and women do not occupy the same positions. For businesses, it is easy to achieve very good results on this index. »
The economist also points out the heavy workload for HR. “Procedures are also susceptible to distortion. The production of this index should have been outsourced, whether it is the responsibility of INSEE or a public service, so that it is more credible. »
7. The disappointing impact of #MeToo in the world of work
Sexist biases are far from having disappeared, as the economist points out. “Researcher Linda Babcock studied the consequences of “non-promotable” tasks that systematically fall on women: organizing a going-away party, welcoming new arrivals, etc. These tasks are essential, but carried out to the detriment of their careers. »
If #MeToo led to awareness of intolerable climates, the reaction was not what was expected. “In these situations, the economist Caroline Coly envisaged two reactions, says Dominique Meurs : either women manifested themselves in the company, by protesting or by going to see the unions, or they left it realizing that it was unbearable. This second effect unfortunately prevailed. They preferred to go to less toxic sectors. »
In this regard, the economist judges what is currently happening in the cinema sector “extremely interesting. But will these speeches have long-term consequences? I don’t know. Development will require intervention from companies, unions but also public authorities”.
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2024-03-10 03:35:22
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