Yes, it was clear to us that we somehow do more unpaid stuff than men … starts with part-time jobs and the afternoons that go with them. But the numbers that Oxfam recently released really make your ears flicker. To get to the point:
"Men work an average of 6 hours and 44 minutes a day worldwide and are paid for 5 hours and 21 minutes – more than 80 percent of their working time. Women, on the other hand, work an average of 7 hours and 28 minutes a day, but only get 3 hours and 3 minutes of wages – for around 41 percent of their working time. "
In addition, women (even if they do paid work) earn about 23% less salary, men have 50% more wealth, and 65% of those who do not receive a pension are female.
And what about in Germany?
This statement applies to women and men worldwide. And of course you might think that we would be much better off in modern Germany … but the results don't really want to calm down there either. The study leaders at Oxfam in Germany call the income gap, the pay gap, "shockingly high" compared to other European countries. In fact, women earn half as much as men through their working lives. Regarding the pension gap, we are in last place in Europe according to the OECD.
BUT … according to a study from 2019, we work even more than men, in total we work 55 hours a week, including 269 minutes a day without salary. Men work a total of 49 hours a week, of which 164 minutes are free every day. Unfair? But we also mean that!
Why unpaid work is a big problem
So we work more, earn less, have less wealth and an alarmingly high pension gap. So far so good. But another big problem is the psychological aspect: If you work so much "for Umme", you don't link what you have achieved so much with money. Therefore, women see their achievements in the job more as "a matter of course" than men. And so they keep their successes behind the mountain, do not ask for salary increases as often and negotiate far more modestly than their male colleagues. A vicious circle … that leads to fewer female managers and an average lower salary.
What everyone can do about the pay gap
Anyone who thinks the world is unfair and there is nothing we can do is wrong. Each of us can do something … Those in a leadership position can control salary negotiations so that female applicants don't fall into the modesty trap. Parents can do as much housework for their boys as they can for their girls. And each of us can work like a lioness for our own salary and a fairer distribution in our own household. A little more ego would do just fine for most of us. Because every woman who stands up for herself stands up for all women. So come on with the collective ego, which one might prefer to call the sense of justice. The struggle for justice is far from over!