How Is the World Going on Pay Equity?

The difference in wages between men and women in the commercial economy is 20%, while in the social and solidarity economy it is 6%. Wage gaps increase with age, both in the social economy and in commercial, but are always lower in social, according to the data of the report called "Analysis of the Socioeconomic Impact of the Values and Principles of the Social Economy of Spain," by co-authors Rosa B. Castro Núñez and Rosa Santero Sánchez, researchers at the Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, according to the portal of the Solidarity Economy.

In this sense, their work estimates that women account for 32.9% of decision-making positions in the social economy, a difference of 10 percentage points from that obtained by companies in the commercial economy, where the percentage is 22.2%.

How can the reduction in the pay gap be addressed?

According to the 2017 International Labour Organization (ILO), it refers that access to the labor market can be increased by improving access to public care services to lighten the burden of caring for children and other dependent family members, which is often borne by women. This measure not only allows women to return to the formal and remunerated labor market but also benefits those receiving care, according to the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC CSI IGB), on its official web portal, issued an ITUC Report on Economic and Social Policy, called "Gender Gaps in Social Protection."

On the other hand, flexible working arrangements promoted interchangeably for both genders can also contribute to this issue, provided that they do not erode rights, protections, and benefits. Even rising the gender pay gap can help ensure decent livelihoods for working women and address some of the balance in women's and men's social security contributions. In this context, adopting and enforcing equal pay legislation is of paramount importance. These are the countries addressing gender inequality:

Mexico

According to the 2017 International Labour Organization (ILO), a program covering up to 90% of child care costs by subsidizing both low-income parents and providers of these services has improved access to the women's labour market and created 45,000 formal and paid, mainly female, jobs.

Also read: IS THE GLOBAL GENDER GAP CLOSING?

Iceland

As of 2018, companies with 25 or more workers must demonstrate that they pay both sexes fairly without gender discrimination, on the penalty of paying daily fines.

European Union

According to the 2011 European Commission, the European Court of Justice ruled that different insurance premiums for women and men constitute sex discrimination and are not compatible with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, making them illegal practices.

Netherlands

Since 1956, a universal basic pension has been in force for all residents who exceed the retirement age, regardless of work or contributory history. This measure alleviates gender inequalities in pension coverage and has been shown to protect women from poverty in old age, according to the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC CSI IGB), on its official web portal, issued an ITUC Report on Economic and Social Policy, called "Gender Gaps in Social Protection."

Innovative new models of entities

Today, there are countless economic practices, with a clear distribution component. That is why, according to, the working paper called "The Social Economy as a Predistributive Tool of Social Policy," by the authors Enekoitz Etxezarreta, Liseth Díaz, and Juan Carlos Pérez de Mandiguren of the Institute of Cooperative Law and Social Economy of the University of the Basque Country, shows that they have worked best, which are Italian social cooperatives, which have been characterized by a model of Italian social services , which has pivoted on a procurement scheme by the municipalities of social enterprises for the provision of such services.

On the other hand, there is the Norwegian model of socio-labor inclusion: Uloba, which seeks to implement the "Independent Life" approach of people with disabilities also from the organizational field.

Benefits of the social and solidarity economy for women

According to, the portal of the Solidarity Economy, the study called "Solidarity Economic Entrepreneurship," by author Luiz Inácio Gaiger, states that since the nineteenth-century attempts have been made to institute various community forms to democratize the organization of consumption and production, that is, it has been associated with the Industrial Revolution since its inception. Therefore, in these two centuries alternative economic forms have proliferated, beyond commercial logic. These benefits may include:

1. Job creation.

2. Social cohesion.

3. Flexibility in working conditions.

4. Promoting values.

5. Environmental responsibility.

6. Responsible consumption.

7. Comprehensive development.