The gender wage gap is one of the most structural problems in the labor market

Al-Anbat - Shatha Hatamleh

Translated by Batool Alhajjaj 

 Abu Elbeh: Inequality in wages causes women's low participation in work.

 Mukhamarah: "Work" must follow up on complaints to achieve equality. 

 Despite progress and development in work to empower women and achieve equality in dealing and obtaining rights, there is still a gap in wages  Between women and men in work of equal value, and while Jordanian women occupy many leadership positions and decision-making positions, they still face obstacles that limit their economic participation, and this gap contributes to the withdrawal of many women from their jobs and weakens their role in bearing family burdens. 

 A report by the International Labor Organization confirmed that the gender wage gap remains one of the most structural problems in the Jordanian labor market, as the wage gap in the private sector reached 41.7% compared to 28.9% in the public sector. 

 The first secretary of the People's Democratic Party "Hashd" said that the gender inequality in wages is one of the reasons that led to the decrease in the rate of Jordanian women's participation in work to 13% compared to the general average during the past 5 years, adding that the wage gap between the sexes is still  High, despite the similarity of job requirements and job titles, as the gap between men and women in similar professions is 9% in general and 17% in the private sector. 

 She added that local data estimates for both the Department of Statistics and the Social Security Corporation the wage gap in the public sector between 13 and 16%, while it reaches 18% in the private sector, noting that it increases in jobs in which the percentage of women increases, such as the health sector in which the gap reaches  31.8%, and the private education sector 30.

The Localities   wage gap between the sexes is one of the most structural problems in the labor market.

Abu Elbeh Inequality in wages causes women's low participation in work Mukhamarah: Labor must follow up on complaints to achieve equality  There is still a gap in wages between women and men in work of equal value, and while Jordanian women occupy many leadership positions and decision-making positions, they still face obstacles that limit their economic participation, and this gap contributes to the withdrawal of many women from their jobs and weakens their role in  Carrying family burdens. 

 A report by the International Labor Organization confirmed that the gender wage gap remains one of the most structural problems in the Jordanian labor market, as the wage gap in the private sector reached 41.7% compared to 28.9% in the public sector.  

The first secretary of the People's Democratic Party "Hashd" said that the gender inequality in wages is one of the reasons that led to the decrease in the rate of Jordanian women's participation in work to 13% compared to the general average during the past 5 years, adding that the wage gap between the sexes is still  High, despite the similarity of job requirements and job titles, as the gap between men and women in similar professions is 9% in general and 17% in the private sector.  

She added that local data estimates for both the Department of Statistics and the Social Security Corporation the wage gap in the public sector between 13 and 16%, while it reaches 18% in the private sector, noting that it increases in jobs in which the percentage of women increases, such as the health sector in which the gap reaches  31.8%, and the private education sector 30.2%.  

Abu Elba added that the percentage of female workers in the unorganized sector is 41%, and this also contributes to the wage gap between the two sexes, due to the lack of labor legislation in protecting working women.  She pointed out that even in specializations in which most women tend to work, such as the education and health sectors and what is called "career profiling", wages decrease by 13% in the public sector, while the percentage in the private sector rises to about 18%. 

 Abu Elba confirmed that this gap caused an increase in the unemployment rate among females by 31.5% compared to 20.5% among males, and the percentage of unemployed women with a bachelor’s degree was 78.7% compared to 24.6% among males. 

 In the same context, economist Dr. Wajdi Makhamreh said that the law set the minimum wage, which is 265 dinars, but some owners of companies and factories take advantage of women's need for work, so discrimination occurs between them and men, even though the law requires that there be equality and justice in the distribution of wages, indicating that there is  Circumstances that push women to work below the minimum, such as social conditions and poverty. 

 Makhamra indicated that there are some companies that do not include women in social security.  

Because social security indicates that institutions pay them less than the minimum wage, and this is against the law.

Makhamra stressed the need for the Ministry of Labor to have oversight bodies and a department that receives any complaint and holds the violating employers accountable, so that there is justice and equality between women and men in the matter of wages.  

Samar, a teacher in a private school for six years, said that she receives a salary of 190 dinars, which is less than the minimum wage.

 On the other hand, there are teachers in the school where she works who receive a higher salary than the teachers for reasons related to years of experience, indicating that the school employs teachers with less experience so that she can  who pay them lower salaries. 

 "Samia," 37 years old, who works in a private company, says, "Jordanian society still distinguishes between women and men at work," noting that the company she works for, whose manager makes promotions and grants bonuses to male employees, and excludes many women who have proven themselves and their ability achievement in each.