{"id":2663,"date":"2021-09-28T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-09-28T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uniontrack.com\/blog\/?p=2663"},"modified":"2022-01-21T16:36:25","modified_gmt":"2022-01-21T16:36:25","slug":"unions-gender-equity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/unions-gender-equity","title":{"rendered":"The Role of Unions in Addressing Gender Equity"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Ken Green
CEO & Founder
UnionTrack<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gender equality is an unresolved issue that continues to impact economies and societies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though activists, advocates, organizations and legislators have been rallying for gender equity for decades, \u201cprogress towards gender equality has been limited,\u201d writes Elisabeth Kelan<\/a>, professor of leadership and organisation at Essex Business School, University of Essex.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, one statistic from the World Economic Forum\u2019s 2021 Global Gender Gap Report<\/a> shows it will take 135 years to close the overall gender gap on a worldwide scale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While this makes gender equity seem like an impossible dream, it is a reality that can and must be realized. \u201cCreating more opportunity for women and the next generation is an aspiration and a very real goal that can lift the global economy as well as contributing to a more just society,\u201d write the authors of a McKinsey & Company<\/a> report on gender equality\u2019s impact on economies and societies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Everyone has to do their part to address the issue across all economic and societal dimensions, most notably politics, labor, health, and education, as outlined by the World Economic Forum. When it comes to addressing gender inequality in the labor market, unions have the greatest potential to make the biggest impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fight for Equal Pay<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The pay gap between genders is a primary indicator of gender disparity in the workplace, and it has stayed relatively unchanged for years despite ongoing efforts to close it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to data analysis by the Pew Research Center in 2020, women in the U.S. earn 84 percent of what men earn, which means they need to work an extra 42 days to earn the same as their male counterparts. Most telling is the fact that this has been unchanged for about the last 15 years, write Amanda Barroso and Anna Brown<\/a> at Pew Research Center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a testament to the relative lack of progress being made to close the gender pay gap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDespite widespread recognition of the importance of addressing pay inequalities between men and women, progress in closing the gender pay gap has been slow,\u201d Maria Helena Andre<\/a>, director of the International Labour Organization\u2019s Bureau for Workers’ Activities, writes. \u201cTrade unions must continue to address this challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One way unions are doing this is by negotiating equal pay into contracts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Negotiate Equitable Wages in Contracts<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Collective bargaining is one of the most powerful weapons labor unions have with which to close pay gaps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCollective bargaining agreements often establish many of the policies proven to combat gender pay disparity,\u201d write Elise Gould and Celine McNicholas<\/a> at the Economic Policy Institute. They allow unions to set clear standards of pay and promot pay transparency to mitigate the impacts of gender discrimination, Gould and McNicholas explain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are a number of ways unions can address this issue in collective bargaining. The California Commission on the Status of Women and Girls<\/a> suggests unions negotiate the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n