A comprehensive global analysis of gender pay gaps in the health and care sector reveals that pay inequalities to the detriment of women are greater than in other economic sectors.
According to a new joint report by the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the World Health Organization (WHO), women working in the health and care sector face a bigger pay gap than in other economic sectors, earning on average 24 percent less than their male counterparts.
This report, which is the most comprehensive analysis of gender pay inequalities in health care, reveals a gross pay gap of around 20 percentage points, which increases to 24 percentage points if the factors such as age, education and working time are taken into account. These results show that women are underpaid compared to men in the labor market.
Much of the pay gap is unexplained, possibly due to discrimination against women, who make up 67 percent of health and care workers globally. The report also finds that wages in the health and care sector tend to be lower overall than in other economic sectors. This finding is consistent with the fact that wages are often lower in economic sectors where women are predominant.
The gender pay gap in the health and care sector: Analysis of the situation in the world in the era of COVID-19 notes that, despite the COVID-19 pandemic and the crucial role played by health and care workers, equal pay has seen only marginal improvements between 2019 and 2020.
The report also highlights a wide variation in gender pay gaps across different countries, suggesting that pay gaps in the sector are not inevitable and that more can be done to close them. Within countries, gender pay gaps tend to be larger in higher pay categories, where men are overrepresented. Women are overrepresented in lower pay categories.
Mothers working in the health and care sector appear to face additional penalties. During a woman’s reproductive years, the employment and pay gaps between men and women in this sector increase dramatically. These gaps then persist for the rest of the woman’s working life. The report indicates that a more equitable sharing of family tasks between men and women could, in many cases, lead women to make different professional choices.
The analysis also looks at the factors behind the gender pay gap in the sector. Differences in age, education, working time and the difference in participation of men and women in the public or private sectors only address part of the problem. According to the report, the reasons why women are paid less than men with a similar profile in the labor market in the health and care sector around the world remain, to a large extent, unexplained by market factors. work.
“The health and care sector has low wages in general, stubbornly large gender pay gaps and very demanding working conditions. The COVID-19 pandemic has clearly exposed this situation while demonstrating how essential the sector and its workers are to sustaining families, societies and economies,” said Manuela Tomei, Director of the Department of Working Conditions and equality at the ILO. “There will be no inclusive, resilient and sustainable recovery without a strong health and care sector. We cannot have better health and care services without better and fairer working conditions, including fairer wages, for health and care workers, the majority of whom are women. The time has come for decisive political action, including the necessary political dialogue between the institutions. We hope that this detailed and authoritative report will help stimulate the dialogue and actions needed to that end.”
“Women make up the majority of workers in the health and care sector, yet in far too many countries systemic biases result in pernicious pay penalties against them,” said Jim Campbell, Director of Health Workforce at WHO. “The data and analysis contained in this groundbreaking report should enable governments, employers and workers to take effective action. It is encouraging to see that the success stories in several countries show the way forward; including wage increases and political commitment to pay equity.”
About the ILO
Founded in 1919, the International Labor Organization is the only tripartite agency of the United Nations. It brings together governments, employers and workers from 187 Member States to set labor standards, develop policies and design programs to promote decent work for all women and men.
About WHO
The World Health Organization provides global leadership in public health within the United Nations system. Founded in 1948, WHO works with 194 Member States, in six regions and from 149 offices, to promote health, safeguard global security and serve vulnerable people. Our goal for 2019-2023 is to ensure that a billion more people have universal health coverage, that a billion more people are better protected from health emergencies, and that a billion additional people enjoy better health and well-being.
For updates on COVID-19 and public health advice to protect yourself from the coronavirus, visit the following site www.who.int/fr.
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