Women’s movement calls for action on Unequal Pay Day
Sunday is Unequal Pay Day in Belgium, the symbolic day from which women will effectively work for free until the end of the year. The gender pay gap in the country stands at 20 per cent.
The women's movement ZIJkant will demonstrate in Brussels and Ghent on Thursday to protest against the pay gap and has published a survey asking people what they would do with 20 per cent more pay.
“There are a lot of reasons why this persistent pay gap still stands at 20 per cent,” says ZIJkant.
Unequal distribution
“The main one is the unequal distribution of work and caring responsibilities, which means that four in 10 women work part-time, compared to only one in 10 men. In addition, professions in which many women work, such as healthcare, education and childcare, are less well paid than professions in which many men work.”
The glass ceiling, which makes women much less likely to advance to higher positions, is a third reason, while women are also taken less seriously when negotiating their pay, the organisation says. A lack of transparency is another important factor.
“However, closing the wage gap is not an impossible task,” the group says. “Policy can focus on strengthening the pay gap law and implementing European rules on pay transparency. In addition, we have long advocated equalising birth leave with maternity leave, so that care duties are immediately shared fairly.”
#FlandersNewsService | A demonstration in Brussels for equal pay in 2020 © PHOTO KENZO TRIBOUILLARD / AFP
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