Imagine yourself, working the exact same job. Working the exact same hours, but for some unknown reason you are getting paid well and truly less than your colleagues. Now imagine how you would feel if you were in this situation? How would it make you feel? Worthless? Undervalued? Belittled? This is how thousands of women are currently feeling. It is not fair and it should not be the case for these hardworking women. The gender pay gap in Australia is a problem and in a world where we are so advanced and changed, how is there a massive gap in wages? Some industries have taken action and created an equal pay scheme but there are thousands of industries where the gap is real. The pay gap is the difference between the wage that women make, compared to their male counterparts. Women are just as capable as men at doing any job, but they are being put on the back foot for no other reason than their gender. This isn’t just an issue in the everyday workplace, professionals and celebrities are experiencing the same problem.
Consider the highest paying jobs in Australia, for both men and women. A neurosurgeon makes $577,647 per year, but only if you are male. If you are instead female you only make $323,682 per year, that’s 44% less than males. Ophthalmologist males make $552947 whilst women make $217242. A Supreme Court Judge will earn $381323 as long as you’re a man. If you’re a female you are working in the highest paying female job in Australia but there is a catch. It is still less than the mans, as you earn $355844. Women are paid significantly less than men. Women would be required to work an extra 66 days more than men to get the same yearly wage. 66 days, that’s two months of additional work. There are a few industries where both men and women are paid the same amount, teaching and the defence force are just two.
There are societal expectations for women; to wear a bra, have no hair on their legs, to wear makeup and to go out each month and buy sanitary products. Whereas for men, societal expectations are very different. Now if we were to go down to the supermarket, corner store, ‘servo’ or chemist and buy a pack of tampons and a pack of condoms we would see that condoms have no tax. Whereas, tampons have tax on them. Tampons, pads and any other sanitary products that are necessary for any woman from a young age. Each sanitary product is dealt 10% tax. So if you bought a box of tampons for $5.50, 55 cents of that is tax, whereas if you buy a box of durex condoms for $6.50, there is no tax. Many are wanting the expulsion of the tax but the senate claims that sanitary products are a ‘luxury’ item. In an average women’s lifetime she will spend between $5000 and $12,000 depending whether they are on birth control. Men will have no clue about this expense. And the 5 to 12 thousand dollars is only to manage a women’s period. Now to add on the cost of clothing, make up, razors, waxing and anything else that is socially expected by women....
