Closing The Gender Pay Gap Should Be Priority For The Government And Employers
74% of people believe closing the gender pay gap is important and should be a priority for government and employers.
That’s according to research released by WorkEqual today (08.11.21) to mark Equal Pay Day 2021.
Equal Pay Day is the date on which women in Ireland effectively stop earning, relative to men, because of the gender pay gap, which currently stands at 14.4%.
According to WorkEqual’s founder Sonya Lennon, this means women in Ireland effectively work for free for the last 14.4% of the year, i.e. from today.
“Our research shows the public are in strong favour of action from government and employers to close the gender pay gap.
The Gender Pay Gap Information Act was enacted earlier this year, which will mean large employers must report on their gender pay gaps from 2022 onwards.
We are calling on employers to be really proactive about this.
Reporting is just one small aspect of addressing the gap.
It needs to be accompanied by action plans, setting out how individual workplaces will tackle their gender gaps.
Although workplaces with less than 250 employees will not be covered by the Act in its initial years, we also want to see smaller employers embracing change and taking steps now to address the gender pay gap.
All of this must be backed up by ongoing political will and public support.
The Government has promised a public awareness campaign to inform people about the new legislation.
Our research shows strong support for addressing the gender pay gap, but it also points to confusion amongst the general public as to what exactly causes the gap.
We need an effective campaign to educate people about what exactly the pay gap is; why it is important to address it and what the multiple complex factors are that cause it”said Sonya Lennon.
The findings released by WorkEqual today are based on research undertaken in October 2021 by B&A.
An online survey was conducted with a nationally representative sample of 1,011 adults aged 16+.
Key findings include:
74% of people believe closing the gender pay gap is important and should be a priority for government and employers.
Support is particularly strong amongst women:
85% of women agree with this statement, compared to 63% of men.
Older men are more likely to agree with this statement than younger men.
67% are in favour of pay transparency:
they believe people should have the right to know what other colleagues doing the same work are paid.
Support is highest amongst women (70% of women agree vs. 63% of men).
The vast majority of people (70%) believe concerns about the gender pay gap represent awareness of a real issue.
In contrast, 16% believe they are an example of political correctness going too far.
Understanding of what the gender pay gap is and what causes it is mixed.
70% of people recognise that the gender pay gap is the difference in the average hourly wage of all men and women across a workforce.
85% equate addressing the gender pay gap with ensuring people who do the exact same job get paid the exact same salary.
Only 52% believe the gender pay gap exists because women often make career decisions influenced by the need to care for children and / or other family members.
In relation to career progression, 35% of people say family caring duties have impacted on their career.
45% of women feel they are impacted, compared to 25% of men.
33% of women with teenage children say their career has been impacted vs. 0% of men.
For parents of pre-teens, 41% of women feel impacted, compared to only 10% of men.
And, for parents of pre-school children, 46% of women feel impacted, compared to 16% of men.
Commenting on the findings, WorkEqual CEO Angela Smith said:
“The failings in Ireland’s childcare system have been well-documented.
Our research clearly shows how childcare and broader family responsibilities impact on people’s careers and, in particular, how women bear the brunt of this.
On a hopeful note, men who experience family life are more aware of the gender pay gap and the impact this has.
And, overall, there is strong public support for action by government and employers to close the gender pay gap.
We still have a long way to go and we need the support of everyone women, men, workplaces and elected representatives to make Ireland a much more gender-equal society."
