Gender Pay Gap
By Samantha Sacramento
The GSLP Liberal Government was the first to establish the Ministry for Equality and I have had the honour to hold this portfolio for eight years.
The work undertaken by the Ministry for Equality is multi faceted. The primary objective of the Ministry is the raising of awareness, in respect of which we have invested resources in an unprecedented fashion. The Ministry has also been engaged in the introduction of new legislation, policies and practices in areas identified as requiring attention.
I believe that in order to successfully tackle the issue of the gender pay gap, it is important to engage with and advance contemporary international thinking in this area. To this end, I attended the Equal Pay Coalition technical conference in Iceland earlier this year. The value of attending events like this and learning from a network of established professionals in the field cannot be overstated. I am committed, as I have demonstrated by the progress we have made on the equality agenda since the GSLP Liberals took office in 2011, to ensuring that we stay abreast of ideas on promoting better indicators, gather better data and formulate more effective policies to address the gender pay gap.
Closing the gender pay gap is an equal opportunities issue but it is about so much more than that. It is not just a moral and social issue. A reduction in the gender pay gap would also lead to clear microeconomic and macroeconomic benefits. Closing the gap will ensure that the full potential of all individuals in our workforce is unleashed for their benefit.
As part of its work, the Ministry of Equality has established a gender equality strategy, the aim of which is to promote equal opportunities for men and women. The Ministry’s strategy focuses on tackling those social barriers that stand in the way of achieving a more level playing field and one of the strands of the Gender Equality Strategy is the economic empowerment of women.
Statistics suggest that women are particularly disadvantaged in the workplace and this contributes to the gender pay gap. The overall earnings gap, as distilled from the Employment Survey, indicates that men in Gibraltar earn significantly more than their female counterparts. In order to secure more precise data about the gender pay gap, the Ministry for Equality engaged with the Department of Employment and the Statistics Office and developed a Gender Pay Gap Survey which accompanied the Employment Survey. This specific data gathering initiative is the first of its kind in Gibraltar. Notwithstanding that this was a voluntary survey, we were delighted by the very positive response to it. The data is now being analysed and once this is done we will have a clearer picture of the areas and the industry sectors where horizontal and vertical segregation may exist. Whilst measuring the pay gap is by no means a straightforward exercise, the results of the survey will serve as an imperial marker and will provide a baseline to mark progress in years to come.
Notwithstanding that we await analysis of the new data, we have already taken the initiative to address the gender pay gap. We have developed and introduced a number of initiatives as part of the Gender Equality Strategy, including the Women’s Mentorship Programme. This is a key component of this strategy and aims to address the under-representation of women in positions of leadership and management. Following the completion of a very successful pilot the Women’s Mentorship Programme is currently half way through its second cycle. To date, a total of 62 mentees have enrolled in the Programme and they are supported by highly experienced professionals from a variety of sectors.
Removing the challenges and barriers faced by women in the workplace, particularly when it comes to recruitment, promotion and retention is another strand of the Gender Equality Strategy. In order to address this, the Ministry of Equality commissioned training on ‘Gender Diversity and Inclusion: Unconscious Bias’ for both the private and public sector. This training was very well received by the private sector with a hundred attendees. This is indicative of the local business community’s desire to ensure that women are more equitably represented in their respective workforces. The training was also delivered to 141 public sector officers who are eligible to sit on recruitment boards or panels.
Another important element in this process is, in my view, the greater participation in the Gibraltar Parliament of women. To this end, I have sought to formalize the provision of maternity and parental leave for Parliamentarians. There are currently no provisions catering for women Parliamentarians who might want to have a child. The aim of considering formal arrangements for maternity leave and parental leave for parliamentarians is designed to remove the barriers to effective representation and to encourage more women to stand. Earlier this year I wrote to the Clerk of the Gibraltar Parliament to ask that the Select Committee on Parliamentary Reform give due consideration to this matter.
More broadly, and in order to promote greater gender equality, the Ministry for Equality is looking at introducing statutory paternity and and/or parental leave. This will serve to not only challenge gender stereotypes with regards to childcare provision within the family but it will also help to reduce the gender pay gap given that traditionally women have taken responsibility for the majority of the childcare and it is around the age that most women have children that the gender pay gap widens. It will allow families greater flexibility with regards to choosing who looks after the children. Introducing parental leave would also benefit those in same sex relationships.
The GSLP Liberals have blazed the trail of equality since they were elected in 2011. I have been very proud to oversee and participate in the many changes that we have been able to deliver for the community in the equality context. We created civil partnerships and we also made same sex marriage in Gibraltar a reality. Only recently, we published a Bill to repeal section 6 of the Marriage Act, removing the option for the Deputy Registrar to opt out from performing the marriage of a same sex couple. We also oversaw changes to public sector working hours which also benefited many working women and flexible working hours have ensured a greater balance of work and home commitments for men and women.
On October 17th, I urge you to give me the opportunity to continue to work for you and, as part of the GSLP Liberals team, the RIGHT choice for political leadership for Gibraltar. At this election, I share the view expressed by Fabian Picardo that the choice you have to make in less than three weeks is a simple one. It is stark, and it is binary. You can choose the wrong people for the job or, in the GSLP Liberals, the RIGHT people for the job.
I believe, as does the rest of the TEAM, that this is not a time for novices or has beens. Now is not the time for political experiments or political spent forces.
Now is the time for the proven, not promised. Now is the time for the tried and tested.
On October 17th vote for all TEN GSLP Liberal candidates. We will not let you down. I will not let you down.
Samantha Sacramento is a candidate for the GSLP Liberals
