THE CONNECTION BETWEEN GENDER
and
ECONOMIC INEQUALITY

Economic Inequality is generally known as the unequal distribution of opportunities and income between different groups within a society (IZA Institute of Labor and Economics, 2021). Whether it be race, background, religion, or gender, economic inequality will probably continue to exist everywhere, even though it may have different manifestations from one country to another. Though, one thing most countries have in common is, when it comes to the group of society being affected by economic inequality, gender is probably one of the most prevalent. One of the easiest ways we can gauge such inequality is through  data showing the  gender pay gap. The gender-pay gap shows the percentage of just how much more one gender earns more than the other-- in most, iif not all, cases, how much more men earn than women. In 2020, for instance, women in Indonesia were identified to have earned on average, 23% less income than men. Male workers on average earn Rp 7,232,138 monthly, whereas for women it was only Rp 5,907,366 on average (Chatani, 2020).

Economic inequality not only highlights an unequal distribution of income, but also an unequal distribution of opportunities given. According to Chatani (2020), most high-paying jobs in Indonesia are dominated by men, whereas women only take up about a quarter of that quota. There are many factors associated that have established such inequality, such as unequal opportunities in education. In many emerging economies worldwide, child marriage is still a problem in less affluent communities, which hinders a girl’s chance at getting education in school, consequently leading to less occupation opportunities in the future (United States Association of International Aid, 2021). Moreover, according to the United States Association of International Aid (2021),  there are even some customs in certain countries which limit women’s participation in labor. This limits the financial freedom women may have, even for basic necessities. Another thing that further highlights gender-based economic inequality is the existence of pink tax-- a concept where personal care goods for women (such as tampons, deodorants, etc.) cost higher than those for men. Such goods for women can even be priced up to 13% higher than those of the male counterparts (Fordham, 2020).

As time goes by, more social factors arise when it comes to gauging economic inequality. In the 21st century, a new variable has been added when discussing gender-based economic inequality, and that is non-binary and transgender people. Considering that the society has not been as progressive as we hope to be, the community faces discrimination and inequality within their workplaces. For instance, in the United States, unemployment rates are twice for those identifying as non-binary or transgender when compared to those that are cisgender (Davidson, 2016). Davidson (2016) further explained that transgender and non-binary people have found themselves fired from their job due to their gender identities, and concluded that in general, workplaces tend to have a negative impact on those who are gender non-binary/transgender. 

With that being said, it is without question that over time and after years of reform, the current economic systems we have along with the labor markets within them have continued to improve in striving for economic equality within genders. Data has shown that in most countries, the gender pay gap is decreasing. For instance, in the UK, the gap went down from 50% to 16% from a period of 1970-2016, showing that little by little, economic equality is improving at a certain scale (Ortiz-Ospina & Roser, 2018). They further showed other measures to improve gender-based economic equality have been taken in multiple countries worldwide, such as gender equal inheritance systems. Despite this, much work remains to be done: women are overrepresented in informal and vulnerable employment, less likely to have access to social protection, and also bear disproportionate responsibility for forms of unpaid care and domestic work (UN Women, 2021). Hopefully, as more people advocate for economic equality, all of these issues will be resolved in the near future.