The Eurocadres blog
The rate of the women’s euro must be raised
The Nordic countries are often mentioned as a good example of gender equality. In case of Finland, according to the Structure of Earnings statistics of Statistics Finland, narrowing of the gender pay gap seems to be making little progress. The total earnings of women are approximately 84 per cent of men’s earnings. The rate of the women’s euro, or female euro, must be raised more rapidly.
We need to drive people -both women and men- to demand an increase in the rate of the women's euro through structural solutions and a change in operational methods. We must challenge politicians, employers and labour market organisations to make structural changes that will advance the labour market position of women and guide them into jobs that carry a higher level of accountability and a higher salary. Furthermore, men are equally responsible for the home and childcare. Young men are already more willing to assume this responsibility, and therefore the structures should support their rights as well.
Men are equally responsible for the home and childcare.
Akava, Confederation of Unions for Professional and Managerial Staff in Finland, launched the concept of female euro (neuro): The ‘female euro' currency, F€, is useful in explaining, in practice, what the gender pay gap means for those with average earnings. Since a woman’s total earnings are 84 per cent of a man’s earnings, she will need to use 1.20 female euros in order to gain the same purchasing power that is held by a man’s euro. Therefore, for example, lunch costs 1.20 times more for women than for men. This gender pay gap will continue to be a burden for today's wage and salary earners long into the future. Lower pay means a lower pension as well.
Gender equality benefits everybody.
Gender equality benefits everybody. Studies have shown that companies that practice pay equality see an improved overall result. It is possible to eliminate the pay gap, specially the unexplained pay gap by implementing the statutory pay surveys and righting any biases within the workplace. Companies need to develop pay systems that are open and based on the assessment of the requirements of specific tasks, and implement them through, for example, collective agreements or local bargaining.
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Today the European Commisson published its Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025 and a public consultation on gender pay gap – transparency on pay for men and women, that is open for comments 05 March 2020 - 28 May 2020.
The author
Lotta Savinko
Vice-President of Eurocadres and Head of Labour Policy at Akava