Gender wage gap: women earn 71.6% of men’s wages

“I remember that when I joined a company along with a male colleague, I didn’t have as much experience in insurance and he did, but I learned quickly and began to answer more cases than he did. Soon after, they increased his salary, but not me, he did go out on time, they gave him flexibilities, when he had English classes he could leave earlier”, a young 33-year-old lawyer tells us about her experience in the labor market. of the financial sector. She adds that she has perceived that women who are of childbearing age are not valued as much when considering a promotion or a salary increase, due to the “risk” that they may become pregnant.

Therefore, it is not surprising that of the total population with formal jobs, only 32.4% are women and that, while the average monthly income of men is S/ 1,873.3, that of women reaches S/ 1,340.5, that is, 71.6% of men’s income, according to the latest report from the National Institute of Statistics and Informatics (INEI) on metropolitan Lima.

Celebration in the fight

Today commemorates the struggle of women to occupy a space in society in which they have the same opportunities as men in all areas, including the labor field.

Nevertheless, companies are showing that they are increasingly aware that there is a problem, and to this they are reacting with measures that seek to level the playing field, that go beyond implementing specific programs for women only, and that are transversal to the entire organization.

In 2021, 23% of first-level positions in the organizational structure of Peruvian companies were held by women, two points more than the previous year, according to the PAR 2021 Ranking. Although this means that the percentage of companies led by men remains being older.

Among the actions that companies implement for a formal commitment to the gender equalitythere is the protocol on how to act in cases of workplace harassment (91%), gender equality policies (76%) and gender equality committees (72%).

Despite these advances, women have been the most affected population during the pandemic. Of the jobs that were lost in 2020, more than 4 million jobs for women in Latin America and the Caribbean currently need to be recovered, according to the International Labor Organization (ILO), while in Peru the female unemployment rate of last three months is 10.8%, four points more than men according to the INEI.

“Although there are companies that want to be agents of change and are doing things, there are still huge challenges to achieve greater participation of women and even more so to reach parity levels. The organizations that are measured in the PAR Ranking tend to be those that have a commitment to equity, that have the issue on the agenda. Without determined actions and accompanied by goals, it is not possible to increase the level of Peruvian women in top-level positions in companies”, explains Andrea de la Piedra, CEO of Aequales.

In this context, another situation has arisen, warns María José Gómez, director of Fundación Forge Perú. “From the labor market they are beginning to demand that people have digital skills. Men are the ones who have begun to develop these skills because they have managed, they have bought software, they have been trained and women were left out of their training processes because they had to stay at home doing other tasks, “says Gómez.

Companies with equity

Today companies have the opportunity to create more equitable spaces for men and women. In 2021, 863 organizations from 18 Latin American countries, including Peru, participated in an evaluation to identify what mechanisms are being implemented to reduce gender gaps and include historically underrepresented communities.

36% of companies have gender goals, Regarding the selection processes for new personnel, 75% disseminate the job announcements with a language that includes men and women in the requested profile and 62% includes a woman in the selection process.

On the other hand, the report concludes that the more flexibilities have been implemented for the members of a company, the higher percentage of women there are in leadership positions. Some of these actions are the application of flexible or staggered schedules, flexible days for any collaborator, remote or distance work, paid leave in addition to what is contemplated by law, among others.

“We are starting to see that companies are having more creative practices and that they are thinking about the needs of their team. And above all, they are beginning to have a positive impact on the retention of female talent”, highlighted Andrea de la Piedra.

For her part, María José Gómez points out that a first step for companies to be more equitable is the implementation of an equality plan. “It is simple to develop and makes it easier for the person who enters a specific position to do so because of their skills. Then the establishment of salary scales, which is established by law only that it is not being implemented, and annual bonuses per position, regardless of who occupies the position”, explains Gómez. Another measure that should be adapted, according to the director of Forge, is the implementation of spaces to breastfeed in companies with more than 50 workers.

A long way to go

Until before the pandemic, Peru was in 65th place out of 114 countries in the world in terms of the presence of women in university careers linked to science and technology, according to the World Bank.

While companies are modernizing and adapting to the diversity of their environment, changes are also seen from the educational offer. For example, this year there are 400 women studying careers such as Industrial Electricity and Mechatronics, which represent 6% of the population of women who study at the Idat institute.

“It is very important to give girls and adolescents a mentor in their training processes and that they can see that there are other women in the field of technology and engineering, and that they know that they can also achieve a leadership position by studying a career of this type”, specifies Patricia Gastulo, academic director of Inlearning.

For its part, the Senati institute reported that at the end of 2021, 23.1% of its students were women pursuing a technological professional career. This growth is not only visible in Lima (4,144 students), but also in other cities of Peru such as Arequipa (1,342), Chiclayo (947), Talara (763) and Sullana (699).

Senati reveals that the salaries for women who chose to follow a professional technical career reach S / 3,300, depending on the degree of specialization. However, the salary can be higher in technology, mining or construction and sanitation industries.

reactions

Andrea de la Piedra, CEO of Aequales

“Organizations are beginning to understand that betting on equity and inclusion represents the viability of a company surviving in the market over time”.

Patricia Gastulo, Academic Director at Inlearning

“It is very important that companies are aware of what leadership roles they have and who is in those positions, and encourage more women to assume them.”

More women in the technology sector

Focus by: Valeria Vargas, GH leader in Soaint

At the level of Latin America we have a deeply rooted patriarchal culture, where science, technology, engineering and mathematics are areas studied by mostly men. However, even if it is not believed, the pandemic has been a very clear opportunity to be a positive scenario for women, since many companies, for example, have had to digitize their processes. So, the labor demand in information technology (IT) increased even more here in Peru, and there were more women who managed to enter these positions, thanks to the remote work modality. Now with the probable return to the offices, even in a hybrid modality, the tangibility of having diverse teams is going to be seen. In a space you will no longer see only men sitting, but 50/50 or 60/40, and you will be able to enrich yourself with the factors that women can contribute to the team, even motivating you to hire more women because there is better communication , greater negotiating capacity and more integration.