International Women's Day 2024: Gender Pay Gap Still An Issue, Say Industry Players

International Women’s Day 2024: Despite a number of initiatives by the government as well as the private sector towards women’s empowerment, a lot more needs to be done to bridge the gap. Among others, the gender pay gap is an issue that has caught attention often. According to a World Bank report, only 35 out of 98 economies have implemented measures or enforcement mechanisms to address the pay gap in the world.

In India, as per estimates from the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), the COVID-19 pandemic adversely affected women, reversing decades of progress and increasing the gender pay gap by 7 per cent between 2018-19 and 2020-21.

To address this, Priyanka Gulati, partner at Grant Thornton Bharat, said “We can fill the gap by inspiring more women to be the CEOs of their own careers, irrespective of level and industry; having women at leadership and board roles; with better monitoring of government policies and incentives — equal remuneration act; and enforcing band-wise salary levels rather than gender.”

She said this will result in a more equitable society.

Shalini Nair, co-founder and board director of Ennoventure, said, “As per the ‘Women, Business, and the Law’ report by the World Bank, only 35 out of 98 economies have implemented measures or enforcement mechanisms to address the pay gap, despite the existence of legislation mandating equal pay for women for work of equal value in these economies.”

She said only when we bridge this pay gap with stricter implementation of this policy and bring more economies under the purview of this legislation, then we will truly pave the way for an equitable society, where every woman’s efforts are not just valued but reciprocated with dignity and parity.

Anoop Bhargava, CEO and director of Empire Centrum, said the Pink Collar Skilling, a report released recently by Primus Partners and World Trade Centre, highlights that woman workers in the Indian real estate sector earn 30-40 per cent less than their male counterparts.

“It points to the presence of gender inequality in the real estate sector in India,” Bhargava said.

He added that the arrival of technology in the real estate industry offers scope to bridge the gender gap. Property technology can improve every aspect of the business, from R&D to planning, construction, sales and realisation.

Aman Dhall, an angel investor and founder of Commscredible, said “While the gender pay gap is indeed a global reality, it’s important to recognise that it alone may not accurately gauge organisational inclusivity and fairness in pay structures.”

He said factors such as employee roles, skill sets, and contributions to operational excellence and bottomline results serve as more critical benchmarks for evaluating pay differentials within an organisation.