The gender pay gap in the health sector is larger than in other sectors globally.
On average, women earn 24% less than their male colleaguesemerged on Wednesday from an in-depth analysis of compensation in the health sector carried out in 54 countries by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Labor Organization (ILO). In Belgium, the situation is more favorable: 58% of staff in the sector work in professional categories where women earn more than men.
Globally, the pay gap is 20%, but it climbs to 24% when you also consider factors such as age, education and working time. For the authors, this increase indicates that women are paid less than men for their qualities in the labor market.
In the health sector, two out of three workers are women at the World level. The study also shows that wages in the sector are generally lower than in the rest of the economy, as seen in other sectors where women are in the majority.
For mothers working in the health sector, there are additional disadvantages. During their maternity years, the pay gap widens considerably and persists throughout the career.
There are large disparities in pay inequality between countries, leading the authors to believe that the pay gap is avoidable and that more can be done to close it.
« The pandemic has made it clear that the healthcare sector suffers from low wages, significant pay gaps and very demanding working conditions,” said the director of the ILO’s working conditions department, Manuela Tomei. “But the pandemic has also highlighted the importance of the sector and its people in sustaining families, society and the economy. The time has come to take decisions, and we hope that this detailed report will help to initiate the necessary dialogue. »
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