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July 19, 2021

Andrew Campbell 

Another potentially decisive and important step is to promote equal pay for equal work. Domestic violence, gender-based violence, and workplace harassment have worsened during the pandemic, undermining women's ability to work even more, and the latest report emphasizes the need to eradicate the scourge immediately. Women have suffered disproportionate job and income losses due to their over-representation in the hardest-hit sectors, such as accommodation and food services and manufacturing, according to the International Labour Organization (ILO). "Building Forward Fairer: Women's Rights to Work and at Work at the Core of the COVID-19 Recovery," released on July 19.

The ILO predicts that gender disparities in the workplace, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, will persist in the near future. Furthermore, policies governing parental leave and flexible working arrangements can promote a more equitable division of domestic labor between men and women. Working toward universal access to comprehensive, adequate, and long-term social protection can also help close the gender gap.

Increased women's participation in decision-making bodies, as demonstrated by the ILO, as well as more effective social dialogue, would make a significant difference. According to the agency, gender-responsive strategies must be at the heart of recovery efforts. Investing in the care economy is critical because the health, social work, and education sectors create a lot of jobs, especially for women.

According to the ILO policy brief, women's employment fell by 4.2 percent globally, or 54 million jobs, between 2019 and 2020, while men's employment fell by 3 percent, or 60 million jobs. This means that there will be 13 million fewer women in the labor force this year than in 2019, but men will likely return to levels seen two years ago. Meanwhile, only 43% of the world's working-age women will be employed by 2021, compared to 69% of their male counterparts.