Pandemic may stall bid to close gender gap
Chilean women take part in a demonstration to commemorate International Women’s Day in Santiago on Monday.
Efforts to close the gender pay gap risk stalling as countries recover from COVID-19, researchers said as a global poll showed almost a quarter of men thought the issue was “political correctness gone too far.”
Although the survey spanning 28 countries revealed nearly eight in 10 people considered it important to tackle wage differences between men and women, almost half of them did not think it should be a top priority during the health crisis.
More than one in 10 men said tackling the pay gap was not important, according to the poll published on International Women’s Day by Ipsos MORI and the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership at King’s College London.
One in five men believed media reports about the issue were “fake news.”
The findings come amid growing evidence that women have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“If we’re to have any chance of ensuring women don’t lose out further because of the crisis, we need to keep this (pay gap) issue high on the agenda,” said then Australian prime minister Julia Gillard.
Domestic violence up
Women are more likely than men to work in health and care jobs on the front lines of the pandemic, as well as in badly hit sectors such as hospitality and retail, and have shouldered the burden of childcare during school closures. Lockdowns have also brought a rise in domestic violence.
Respondents said more flexible practices and greater support for domestic abuse victims should be top priorities for ensuring that COVID-19 recovery efforts address issues facing women.
Women are paid about 16 percent less than men, according to UN Women.
The poll of 20,520 people across Europe, the Americas, Asia and the Middle East showed 42 percent thought closing the gap was important, but should not be prioritized right now, compared with 36 percent who thought it should be.
On pay transparency, more than half of respondents thought workers had the right to know what colleagues doing similar jobs were paid, with support slightly higher among women than men.
