8 March, 2010On March 8 and throughout this week, women around the world call for an end to discrimination and demand their rights at work in commemoration of International Women's Day.
GLOBAL: On March 8, people gathered in Geneva under the banner of International Metalworkers' Federation's Swiss affiliate UNIA calling for equality between men and women. At the event, held in commemoration with International Women's Day, women and men expressed opposition to the raising of the retirement age for women and against the bill that will increase store opening hours affecting women in the largely feminized retail sector. Those gathered also call for wage equality and the effective application of the law on equality in Switzerland.
Elsewhere, French affiliate FGMM-CFDT released the results of a new study which shows continuing wage differentials between men and women in the metal industry in France. The average pay gap between men and women is reported to be 21 per cent. When factors such as breaks in career progression because of maternity, age and variations in functions are excluded, there still remains an average salary discrimination of some 5 per cent, which can only be explained as sexist. For women, this represents several years of missed salary increases and has serious consequences for women's retirement pensions which end up being on average nearly 40 per cent lower than those of men.
French unions have responded by negotiating an agreement that aims to do away with salary differences between men and women. The agreement give a basis for negotiations at enterprise level by providing for increases reserved for women to eliminate salary differences, a best practice guide and changes to the gendered image of metalworking jobs. The FGMM-CFDT points out that the agreement will only be successful if unions and management at enterprise level really engage with it. As women have been particularly affected as a result of the economic crisis, negotiations should prioritize women's employment.
Later this week on March 10, affiliates of the IMF and the European Metalworkers' Federation will meet in Luxembourg to examine the impact of the economic crisis on women in the metalworking industry.