Why do you need to care about the wage gap: And How?
How long is the fight for
gender equality?
How is any woman supposed to
work knowing that she is paid a fraction of what her male colleague is paid?
And for what?
The wage difference between men
and women is essentially what is called unequal pay.
The wage gap is the phenomenon
that gives rise to overall gender inequality but it's a lot more than being
paid less or more for the same job. The gender wage gap is a multifaceted
issue. We witness more than only one issue that is directly or indirectly
related to or is born by the unfair allocation of money between genders. As we
move forward understanding this social evil, we have to correct our definitions
first.
What are
the gaps in our awareness about the Wage Gap?
The Wage gap refers to the difference in
the average payment or compensation of men and women who are working. It means
that if we take a total of remuneration of all women of an organization and
total of remuneration of all men of the same organization, and find the
averages. The difference is called the wage gap. Women are very often paid
lesser than men for the same positions at work.
This implies that women are not as financially free as men
and are given lesser opportunities. Not only it creates a wedge between the
genders but also discourages women from pursuing their careers.
The wage gap drives Inequality; what drives the Wage gap?
As we face and continually keep the fight
about the wage gap, we have to understand where it all comes from. And how to
shut this pipe of filth. There are four main (non-exclusive, non-exhaustive)
causes of the growing wage gap.
1.
There are more men in senior
roles than women.
The key factor to the wage gap is the
absence of more women in senior roles. The statement can make some people think
that maybe women do not work as hard or are not capable enough for senior
roles. But we cannot make this sweeping generalization (just how not all men!
Exactly that. ) about gender.
There is a myth of assuming that senior
roles can only be done full-time. Senior roles require long hours and there is
no place for part-time. But we need to accept that people are not only workers,
but they are parents or caregivers as well. So the rearrangement of the
assumption for senior roles can help many to go for senior roles without being
restricted by the responsibilities of the home. It will help a lot of women who
are bound by their houses and why only women? Men as well.
2.
Women are held responsible for
building a “Home”
As a gender, women, are given the
responsibility of bearing children and feeding them for six months (which is
something you decide). After that, the responsibility of the child stays
attached to the mother. This associates women with homemaking and taking care
of children.
After the child is born or even before, it
is not rational to put all the pressure of keeping the house together on the
woman. As women grow more towards financial freedom, their success is still
measured by how well-maintained their house is. How many chores can they
perform before they go out of the house? While men are not seen or shown (in
digital entertainment sources) to be responsible for the environment of the
house. There are only nagging-lazy-bad mothers, wives, women in our cinemas or
television. As much as it is important that a home has to be maintained, it is
not right to put that on women only.
Pro tip: Next time when you are asked to
stay at home and not work, ask your husband to send his half salary to your
separate bank account. Because apparently, your husband considers you to be
their equal in everything.
3.
Women are restricted to
low-paying roles
As we saw that women are associated with
building the house and homely responsibilities, this also causes women to
choose low-paying jobs. The jobs that they can handle with their home life.
Such jobs are usually teaching, making stuff, or jobs that can be done part-time.
It causes women to be restricted to low-paying jobs. It also negatively affects
the wage gap.
Ask to share the responsibility and demand
that it is not only women who are plausible for the clean, decorated house
with responsible well-read children.
4.
Companies are not following The
Equal Remuneration Act, 1976.
A long time ago, there was a time when men
used to go to work and women used to stay at home. The thing to note here is
that it was a long time ago and should be left there. Today more women work
and most of them have to face the enigma of getting paid less than men to spend
in the same market as men spend it in.
A large part of what has supported the wage
gap for so long is the irrational and irresponsible workings of companies. If
every company took the responsibility to remove the wage gap; the wage gap
would cease to exist.
The equal remuneration act, 1976, supports
"equal remuneration between men and women who are working, and prevent any
discrimination based on sex towards women.”
How we can change this? By having open
conversations about our salaries with our colleagues. By discussing your
salaries, you can be aware if the company you work for are following the rules
or are complete trash.
There is a stigma about discussing salaries
which can only drive the wage gap further. Asking openly and telling openly can
help a lot in reducing the wage gap.
Conclusion
The wage gap has not reduced in the last 25
years and it is time to actively dissolve it. The wage gap is a phenomenon that
affects the whole society. The key is to identify when you see
discrimination and to learn to actively look out for discrimination is
reading more about these topics. Reading more on these topics will help your
mind to be on alert when it happens to you or around you. Identify and then
challenge it. Whether it is a sexist joke or a pay gap. Don’t be afraid of
filing complaints, as it will help you and others to have the equal treatment
they deserve.
