Originally posted on CNN en Español
Women earned 30% less than men for similar positions despite earning more university degrees, masters and doctorates. However, post-COVID work environments could tilt the balance towards salary equity
Remote work has come to set the record straight: not every important decision is made in a boardroom. Some are made in a laptop on a countertop in a kitchen with children’s voices squeaking in the background. The COVID-19 pandemic confined men and women (equally, for once) to work from home, and that has made an impact on the way time between family and work is distributed.
Of course this doesn’t mean that there has been progress in women’s working conditions. It’s quite the opposite. The salary gap between men and women continues to exist (the statistics from 2020 show that women make just 81 cents for every dollar that is paid to a man), and, the impact of the pandemic has been more negative for women than it has been for men: the Women in the Workplace study, which McKinsey publishes annually, reveals that women lost their jobs more than men during the pandemic, and those who kept them had to face the double challenge of combining profession with housework, with the heavier part of the load falling on the Hers rather than on the Hims.
But, there is a silver lining. The good news is that remote work allows for more job flexibility, and as we look beyond the pandemic, normalized work from home models will likely benefit women. Statistics show that when children are born, this affects professional moms more than dads: 43% of mothers leave their jobs or put on hold their careers, while others look for solutions that range from renouncing part of their salary in favor of more flexible schedules to going freelance or starting their own businesses.
The post-COVID scenario could turn that tide. Although the flexibility that remote work allows will not automatically solve all the gender inequality, being able to compete based strictly on capabilities is making way for a world of opportunities where the only currency is talent.
Working on the cloud multiplies employment opportunities that are available to talented professionals of any gender, age or nationality in the world- regardless of geographical barriers. It also tends to level the value of work. Previously, salary was defined based on local benchmarks, but now it can be established according to international guidelines. Perhaps, on average, this will make the universal salary a bit lower than the one currently being paid in the most developed countries, but it allows access to opportunities abroad in the best companies.
The digitization of work produces scenarios in which results are what are ultimately valued. If we manage to turn this tide, we will have managed to shake off these obsolete schemes in which the degree of professionalism is measured by variables other than competition and delivery. As we celebrate Equal Pay Day, we work with the conviction that one day we will work in a world where salary is based on talent and free of bias.
Read article here https://cnnespanol.cnn.com/2021/03/08/opinion-el-salario-no-tiene-genero-cuando-se-ancla-en-el-talento
