03.11.2017 @ 11h44
This is the time where women stop being paid considering the gender pay gap between men and women.
Mad&Woman Agency, Paris
The gender pay gap is a real issue in our society. According to Eurostat, we would need 217 years to obtain an equal pay. 217 years !!! It is too many generations to count.
As girls, we are told that we can study whatever we want and be as good as men, even better. So that’s what we do. We work hard, and we study, and we make it happen. We didn’t steal anything, we legitimately earned it. Yet, what is our cashback ? An average pay gap of around 16%.
Our politics like to talk about democracy, about human rights and all those beautiful/noble ideas. However, equal pay would be economically not feasible according to some. Easy to always hide behind the economy to justify inequal rights.
And it is getting worst. As a matter of fact, in 2010, women started to work “voluntarily” on November 7th @ 16h34. So, it means that in 2017, we work 4 more days without being paid. Shocking, right ?
In Switzerland, a law supposedly “forces” some compagnys of more than 50 employees to show their accounts. This check should happen every 3 years. Interestingly enough a difference of 5% will be tolerated. Why ? It is not said. Furthermore, if a company does not comply to this, no punihsment will occur. So one question is left opened ? Who are they kidding !
It is up to us, to our generation to keep on fighting, respecting all the work that women and men did in the past, so that our children won’t ask us what was our problem !
Protest, 1976
To finnish on a lighter note, here is a short video. Fun but not so much actually.
Architecture is also concerned. A Woman in Architecture survey can be found here.
You can find detailled information about the wage gap in various european country, as well as in Switzerland, on the Eurostat website.
Some more information about the #3Novembre11h44 can also be found in the French newsletter, Les Glorieuses
About the Swiss law, an article on Le Temps dating back in 2014 (French)