Professional development of women is high in Ecuador, but they continue to earn less compared to men

In the Ecuadorian labor market, women learn quickly, develop professionally faster than men, and overcome stereotypes to concentrate on activities that generate both economic performance and social results.

The constant struggle and demands for equal rights have caused the labor gap between women and men to be reduced, although it is still significant. Figures from the National Institute of Statistics and Censuses (INEC) show that, for example, the average income of women, in January 2022, was $497, but men registered $582. In addition, unemployment impacts women of working age more with 6.7%.

Adequate employment is also lower in relation to the male population. Meanwhile, the salary mass registered in the Ecuadorian Institute of Social Security shows that In 2020, $17,248 million were paid for salaries and of this figure, 59.1% was allocated to men. The pandemic also affected the labor figures of women.

In short, fewer women are hired in both the public and private sectors, and those they do employ are not paid the same as their male counterparts. For the labor expert Vanessa Velásquez, what the statistics reflect is that the discriminatory process of being a woman is still maintained.

“We are made to conceive. Normally, many companies, large or medium, carry out fertility studies and when the periods for hiring new personnel open, they ask the applicants if they want to be mothers. As women we are in charge of taking care of the children, it becomes a hindrance, it even happens for executive promotions“, it says.

Women are the most affected by unemployment in Ecuador, according to INEC figures

In 2018, an Ipsos study, in which 500 large and medium-sized companies were evaluated, determined that in Ecuador only one in ten CEOs is a woman and that only 26% of board members are women. “This is also reflected in politics, in the judiciary. We have only had one president of the Republic, one president of the Constitutional Court, only 38% of assembly members are women”, she affirms.

For Verónica Sevilla, former executive director of the Ecuadorian Business Committee and business developer, there are two determining factors for the labor figures of Ecuadorian women to continue in the red compared to men. “The first is the historical social constructions that affect the productive sectors, because it was only 60 or 80 years ago that women left the so-called care jobs at home and joined the public and private labor sector.”, he maintains.

The second factor is theunconscious biases” that are evident, for example, when a woman is interviewed for a job, the businesswoman points out: “A 30-year-old woman, recently married, is asked if she will have children, but that does not happen in a job interview. man because they assume that if he has children they will be cared for by his wife.” She adds that although affirmative measures such as laws against gender violence and the one that proposes the promotion of the so-called violet economy are very good steps in the country, the aforementioned factors still weigh heavily.

“Although I think that, little by little, the example of women who are walking in the business and public world with results are rebuilding these social constructions. Also venturing into professions that were previously unthinkable for us. Men have a lot to do with this (a change) because they have 80% of the family businesses in Ecuador, historically they are the ones who have integrated directories, manage the companies“, it states.

Women lost more full employment positions than men in January 2022, according to INEC

Another issue, according to Sevilla, is that many women stop their careers to dedicate themselves to caring for children or relatives. In addition, to be in executive positions, time with the family must be sacrificed and many women are not willing to do so.

Cristina Velásquez has developed a large part of her professional life in the construction sector, which has historically been considered non-traditional for women in Ecuador. She has fulfilled command roles. she is currently country manager of the company Tul Ecuador and is responsible for managing more than 250 collaborators. He previously worked in a transnational company dedicated to the wire industry and in a paint factory.

“I was not targeting the construction sector. I am a commercial engineer, but when these possibilities opened up I took them. When I was in the wire company it was a world full of men, but I never felt differentiated in the treatment for being a woman. Rather, being a woman I saw advantages. I grew up in various leadership positions and ended up managing the marketing team. I think I am one of the lucky ones who has felt in a totally egalitarian system”, he refers.

For her, the fact that there are not many women in sectors such as construction is due to affinity issues. “When I joined the painting company, a question from my boss was if he was aware that he would be in the middle of the smell of paint, dyes, in places that were not so pretty. I did not see a problem because I grew up in a world of engineers and architects, but perhaps for another woman this environment is not very attractive.

Women in pandemic: 48% lost their job, 18% had to quit and now depend financially on their partner

However, affirms that where she has felt a difference and resistance is when talking to clients, since they see “very rare” that a woman comes to offer them a service or product for construction. He points out that, in general, they think that women do not know about the subject, but when knowledge is demonstrated based on data, the opening is created. “Although we must make a lot of effort to generate credibility, once it is achieved, the treatment received for being a woman is better than that given to a man. They are more sensitive, respectful. In this sense, I think that being a woman in the construction industry is an advantage”.

Vanessa, Verónica and Cristina agree that more impulses should be created to improve the work environment for women through laws that favor their hiring. “At least until there is equality,” says Sevilla. (I)