Women still earn around 18% less than men globally
The global gender pay gap has narrowed by just two percentage points in nearly a decade, according to the International Labour Organization (ILO), which called out the lack of progress as "not enough."
Women are still earning around 18% less than men globally on average, the ILO's latest gender pay gap estimates revealed, just two percentage points narrower than in its previous findings in 2018.
"A reduction of just two percentage points in ten years is simply not enough," said ILO director-general Gilbert Houngbo.
"Equal pay is not only a question of fairness; it is fundamental to achieving gender equality and advancing social justice in the world of work, hence the urgency of accelerating progress and turning commitments on equal pay into results."
Progress on the gender pay gap also varied across countries and income groups, with the ILO finding that the gap narrowed by around 2.5 percentage points in high-income countries.
However, lower-middle-income nations only saw the pay gap narrow by two percentage points, while upper-middle-income nations saw it narrow by just one percentage point.
Emanuela Pozzan, senior gender specialist at the ILO, said the varying progress achieved by nations indicates that there are ways to close the gender pay gaps.
"Progress is possible, and it requires smart policies that are context-specific and that are tailored to a country's own labour-market conditions," Pozzan said.
"And it is important that we act now, because there are millions of women whose work sustains families, businesses, and communities and must not continue to be undervalued."
What can employers do?
Chidi King, chief of the Gender, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (GEDI) Branch of the ILO, said employers have a role in addressing the structural barriers that hold back equal pay.
"Together, governments, employers and workers can remove the structural barriers that underpin this injustice and strengthen the laws and institutions that promote equal pay," King said.
According to the ILO, measures that can tackle the structural factors behind gender pay inequalities include stronger pay transparency, objective and gender-neutral job evaluation, effective wage policies, collective bargaining, enforcement of equality legislation, and investment in care systems and social protection.
"Through social dialogue, including collective bargaining, they can address the undervaluation of work done by women, strengthen pay transparency, build fairer wage structures, and ensure that women have an equal voice in shaping their economic lives," King said.
