On National Equal Pay Day, research by ISEG’s new Gender, Work and Power Observatory reveals that asymmetries in Europe could be greater than the estimated 13% and reach 18.4%.
In Portugal, according to data from 2022, women, for every hour of workearn approximately 12.5% less than men. This is the most recent European data available.
However, a new study by ISEG suggests that, if factors such as age, level of education and length of employment relationship are considered, this percentage could rise much higher.
if women receive 12.5% less than men, . But, if the percentage reaches 18%, as is now believed, It’s as if your work from October onwards is unpaid.
In fact, it is enough to consider the complements and benefits in the equation. If so, the value immediately increases to 16% difference, notes the .
In addition to the barometer on the pay differential (DRHM), the new ISEG Observatory also launched another, on the labor participation of men and women. According to Sara Falcão Casacaresearch coordinator, in statements to , these documents appear together for a reason.
“We believe that we can only frame the perplexities [do DRHM] having the other barometer, because the pay differential to the detriment of women is often explained based on a thesis that tells us that women participate less in the job markettend to disengage more from the world of work with the maternity and working more part-time” he begins by explaining.
“Now, these theses do not fit the Portuguese reality and it is essential that the two documents come out at the same time, to help us understand this”, he concludes. In other words, according to Público, 70% of the cases in which there is salary inequality there is no explanation other than prejudice.
The researcher also spoke to Expresso, to whom she revealed that salary differences “are more penalizing the higher the level of education (22.3% when there is a higher level of education) and qualifications. They reach almost 24% among senior management and around 19% among highly qualified professionals”. Furthermore, he points out, “increase with age throughout the professional career, reaching the maximum value in the age group of 50 to 64 years, 21.3%”
According to Carla Tavarespresident of the Commission for Equality in Labor and Employment (CITE), cited by , “female work is still undervalued” and, if this continues, equality will only be achieved in 27 years: recalls the principle of equal pay for equal workestablished in the Treaty of Rome (1957). But its implementation fell short of expectations: in 2012, the difference was still 18.5%.
Today, the CGTP released a statement asking parental leave with equal mandatory periods to combat labor inequalities.
According to , the wage gap between men and women does not only occur in working life, but also in retirementwhere the difference in pay is around 15%.
According to Público, in general, women are also exposed to lower paid jobs — women perform 92.4% of work associated with personal care and similar work and 88.2% of cleaning staff, for example –, at the same time as they represent less than 30% of the “representatives of power legislative and executive bodies, senior directors of public administration, specialized organizations, directors and managers of companies”, is written in the barometer.
The president of CITE concludes: “It’s a question of justice”because “if the work is the same, has equal social and economic value, then it must have the same payment. As a society, we cannot allow this unfair situation to continue over time.”
