Spanish trade union UGT has relaunched the #YoTrabajoGratis campaign to denounce the gender pay gap, which stands at 9.4% in Spain. According to the union, women work for free 34 days a year, from Monday 28 November to 31 December.
Thus, women in the EU are paid on average 13% less per hour than men. That is equivalent to one and a half months’ salary per year (47 days’ pay) that women effectively work for free. According to the latest data from Eurostat, Spain ranks eighth for the lowest pay gap with a pay gap of 9.4%.
UGT sees an opportunity for Europe to close the gender pay gap by adopting a directive on wage transparency. This will enable women workers to reassess the value of their work, “which is currently undervalued”. This is why the Women’s Committee of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), of which UGT is a member, has continuously campaigned to put pressure on the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council of the Union to adopt this directive.
Directive Royal Decree
The union also recalls that in Spain it is “fundamental” that companies comply with Royal Decree 902/2020 on equal pay for women and men. Thus, the wage gap in the workplace and wage discrimination, can be corrected and eliminated through pay registers. These are mandatory in all companies Spain, regardless of their size. There are also wage audits to be negotiated under equality plans.
For this, “it is essential that the action of the Labour Inspectorate addresses the wage discrimination against women in companies, as well as all aspects that affect this wage gap, such as the types of contracts, working time reduction or leave, among others”.
Also read: Equal rights for women
