Gender Pay Gap Analysis

Poverty is a global issue which affects many aspects of one’s life (Shah, 2011). There are 1.4 billion people living below the $1.25 a day poverty line (Shah, 2011). In all countries, women continue to experience higher rates of poverty than men (Shah, 2011). The gender pay gap amounts to 23 percent in developed countries and 27 percent in developing economies (Oostendorp, 2009). The feminization of poverty is a phenomenon that expresses that women are increasingly the ones who suffer the most from poverty (Shah, 2010).
In Canada, women have average hourly wages that are lower than their male counterparts (Statistics Canada, 2011). Canada has the 7th highest gender pay gap out of the 34 countries that are members of the Organisation for Economic …show more content…
Globalization has played a role in transforming the composition of workforces and has implications on women’s health (Sen & Ostlin, 2008). It has contributed to unequal burdens of unpaid work and responsibility, generally putting women at a disadvantage (Sen & Ostlin, 2008). In addition, women are typically employed and segregated in lower-paid, less secure and “informal” occupations (Sen & Ostlin, 2008).
The consequences of gender inequality can further be experienced by women as differential vulnerability and exposure to illness, poor acknowledgement of women-specific health needs, and inequitable treatment of health problems (Sen & Ostlin, 2008). It also leads to reduced funds for women’s health and education, access to healthcare and permeates the content and process of health research often negatively impacting women (Sen & Ostlin, 2008).
As a result of the gendered hierarchy, particularly in developing countries, men exercise power over women (Sen & Ostlin, 2008). Men are making decisions on women’s behalf, regulating their access to resources and personal control, and policing their behaviour through socially condoned violence (Sen & Ostlin, 2008). This has serious consequences for the physical, emotional, and psychological health of women (Sen & Ostlin, …show more content…
Nurses’ associations have a responsibility to establish and promote programs that enable nurses to achieve a level of economic and social recognition proportional to their contribution to society (International Council of Nurses (ICN), 2000). The CNA can advise the ICN to lobby for governments to apply the principles of equal pay and pay equity to nursing (ICN, 2000). The nurses’ associations should assist in the development of a gender-neutral job classification system (ICN, 2000). They can meet with other provincial health care organizations to evaluate all healthcare job classes against its male comparators (Ontario Nurses Association (ONA), 2016). They can then promote provincial health care organizations to implement this evaluation system (ONA,

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