How Can I Help Reduce Gender Inequality?
Whether you are a woman looking for a job or a man, there is no question that gender inequality exists. In most societies, men are better equipped for certain professions. This gender bias results in lower wages for women. Women also contribute more unpaid work than men, but are not recognized financially for this labor. Thankfully, there are ways to combat this problem. Here are some of them. Read on to learn more. How Can I Help Reduce Gender Inequality?
In the chart above, you can see the share of women who do not participate in household decisions. The line in the middle shows the national average; the dots represent the averages of rich and poor households. Richer households are typically higher on the income scale. Poorer households, on the other hand, are much lower. This inequality is often reflected in wages and the number of assets that men and women own. For example, men own more land than women in most low-income countries.
While more girls are attending school and becoming mothers later in life, gender inequality still exists. Girls face numerous disadvantages, such as violence, institutionalized biases, and poor education. In a time of humanitarian emergencies, the problems that girls face are increasing. Girls are disproportionately impacted by disasters, reducing their participation in public life, and being the caregiver of children. Women are not equally represented in the workforce, and they are under-represented in fields such as medicine, law, and education.
While women are generally disadvantaged in terms of pay and opportunities, gender inequality is especially acute for women of color and Aboriginal communities. Aboriginal women experience violence at high rates and are 11 times more likely to die in family violence. In addition to these difficulties, women of culturally diverse communities experience discrimination and racism. Many women also face problems in the workplace due to their immigration status and limited means. Many women of refugee and migrant backgrounds work in low-pay jobs. Moreover, men feel pressured to be a’real man’ and make more money than their female counterparts.
In addition to the issues of wage inequality, gender equality also has social and economic benefits. For instance, promoting gender equality reduces poverty and violence, which fuels human trafficking. By creating a more equal society, countries with better gender equality are less likely to resort to military force. The benefits of gender equality also extend to health care, education, and employment. If we address these issues, we can help prevent these problems before they start. In addition to these, gender equality can help improve the quality of life in poor communities.
Unpaid work is another area where women suffer. Compared to men, women spend 4.1 times longer on unpaid work than do their male counterparts. According to OECD data, women spend 264 minutes in unpaid work per day, whereas men spend 136 minutes. Paid work, on the other hand, is much higher for men. A recent study by Sarah F. Berk showed that women are not treated more equal by their employers than their male counterparts, and often get paid less per hour.