Chile and Turkey have announced their commitment to join the Equal Pay International Coalition (EPIC), marking a significant step in their efforts to address gender pay disparities. With these additions, the total number of governments aligned with EPIC’s goal of achieving equal pay for women and men now stands at 27. Additionally, Spain, already an EPIC member, and Japan have pledged to enhance their efforts to support this objective.
EPIC currently boasts 63 members, including governments, employers’ and workers’ organizations, international entities, academia, and civil society groups. The latest commitments were made during an event co-hosted by EPIC and the Brazilian government at the G20 meetings in Fortaleza, Brazil, in July. Brazil, as the current G20 president, has prioritized gender equality and workplace diversity in the G20 Employment Working Group (EWG) agenda.
The event, titled Together Let’s Close the Gender Pay Gap NOW, aimed to accelerate progress towards achieving Target 8.5 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It also sought to emphasize how equal pay for work of equal value is crucial for countries to meet other SDGs, thereby helping to reduce hunger, poverty, and inequality.
During the event, delegates discussed the complexities of pay inequalities between men and women and shared best practices for closing the gender pay gap and promoting pay equity in the workplace. Key issues identified included gender-based pay discrimination, ethnic and racial inequalities, the disproportionate burden of unpaid care work on women, and their increased exposure to workplace violence and harassment.
Chidi King, Chief of the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) Gender, Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Branch, moderated the discussion. Opening remarks were made by Brazil’s Minister of Labour and Employment, Luiz Marinho, and a keynote address was delivered by Rosane Silva, Brazil’s National Secretary of Care Economy and Women’s Autonomy of the Ministry of Women.
In her remarks, King acknowledged the progress made in gender equality policies but emphasized that equal pay remains an elusive goal. She pointed out that globally, women earn less than 80 cents for every dollar earned by men, with even wider gaps for women with children, women of color, refugees, migrants, women with disabilities, indigenous women, and those in the informal economy. King noted that despite new legislation introduced in many countries, no nation has yet fully closed the gender pay gap.
Rosane Silva shared Brazil’s efforts in enacting the Equal Pay Law, which includes establishing a Working Group focused on advancing wage and employment equality. She also discussed the creation of the Inter-ministerial Working Group (IWG), responsible for developing the National Care Policy with technical guidance from the ILO.
The event featured contributions from representatives of Brazil, Canada, the United States, the International Organization of Employers, and the International Trade Union Confederation, who discussed their experiences and challenges in addressing gender-based income inequality. Officials from Chile and Turkey confirmed their countries’ commitment to joining EPIC, while Japan and Spain outlined specific measures to reduce their national gender pay gaps.
Closing remarks were delivered by ILO Deputy Director-General Celeste Drake, Interim Representative for Brazil at UN Women Ana Carolina Querino, and OECD Deputy Secretary-General Yoshiki Takeuchi. Drake stressed the collective responsibility to close the gender pay gap by making it visible, measuring it, and implementing innovative and practical solutions to accelerate progress towards achieving SDG Target 8.5.
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