Gender segregation in the labour market remains strong in all countries in the ECE region and can usually be found both across occupations and according to the position of responsibility within an occupation. Women remain at the lower end of a segregated labour market and continue to be concentrated in fewer occupations, to hold positions of little or no authority and to receive less pay than men. However, this varies between countries and a considerable difference can be observed for example between the Scandinavian and CIS countries. Overall, more men than women are engaged in occupations such as craft, trade, plant and that of machine operators. On the other extreme, more women work as technicians, clerks and service workers. The phenomenal growth in service sector jobs, at different times depending on countries in the ECE region, has in general benefited women more than men. Men tend to have better opportunities for self-employment, but in recent years, self-employment has also been growing for women in most countries of the region.
The informal sector is a larger source of employment for women than for men. In some countries, especially the transition economies, informal sector activities take the form of second jobs to earn crucial extra income, or unpaid work in the household to produce goods and services for sale or barter away of coping with increased poverty. In many cases, the boundaries between informal sector and hidden, or even illegal work, is blurred. Women and men working in the informal sector are generally unprotected and vulnerable to exploitation. One striking example is represented by the booming sex industry that puts women at very high risk of violence, disease and exploitation.
Prior to 1989, average female wages were 20-25% lower than men’s in the transition economies, due largely to occupational segregation. However, under market conditions and rapid diversification of wages, the wage gap had increasingly negative impact on women’s financial situation. Generally, a reduction of wage differentials between women and men contributes to a more equal sharing of family responsibilities. As the Danish report on Gender Equality initiatives (2001) highlights, reducing gender division in the labour market is not only a matter of equal pay and more job options for individuals, but also about making the labour marked more flexible, resulting in better products and services.
Examples of policies in the region:
Denmark: initiatives on equal pay and softening a gender-divided labour market
Norway: strategies to eliminate occupational segregation and unequal pay
