Text Guðrún Helga Sigurðardóttir, photo: Friðrik Friðriksson. Nearly half of Iceland’s parliamentarians are women, and the country has had a female President for 20 of the last 50 years. She is also the trade union representative there, and knows what staff think about the equal pay standard and how it benefits them. Iceland, equal pay and enforcing the gender pay gap regulations. Sauðárkrókur is a town in Northern Iceland with 2,600 citizens (above). READ MORE: Iceland to become first country to make companies prove they offer equal pay The bill was tabled and passed last spring, but only took effect on New Year’s Day. Iceland, however, is charting new territory. The economy is largely based around agriculture, but also fisheries. The 2017 law doesn't just expose a company that violates the principle to lawsuits. Anna Lea works at the Icelandic Regional Development Institute Byggðastofnun in Sauðárkrókur in Northern Iceland. Byggðastofnun is an independent body which helps develop Iceland's regions and businesses in rural areas. The most difficult task was to classify the different roles, and to establish rankings. 10/2008. As of 2015, 44% of boardroom executives in Iceland were female, compared with an OECD average of 20%. Should an economist working with customer service be paid differently from an economist working with stocks and shares? By signing up you are agreeing to our, Iceland's Prime Minister Talks Climate Change and Gender Equality Over Ice Cream, Sign up to receive the top stories you need to know now on politics, health and more, © 2021 TIME USA, LLC. Since the first edition of the Forum report in 2006, Iceland has closed around 10% of its total gender gap, making it one of the fastest-improving countries in the world. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our. You can unsubscribe at any time. Posted on January 5, 2018 by Darren Newman. The gender pay gap, namely the higher salary men receive compared to women for work of the same or equal value and that can only be understood as a negative bias against women – is a worldwide problem of gender discrimination. Please try again later. The gender pay gap ranged relatively constantly around 15 to 16 per cent. The Central Bank’s policy is that all employees shall be paid equal wages and enjoy equal terms of employment and rights for the same jobs or jobs of equal value, so that there is no gender-based pay gap within the Bank. On January 1, 2018, the country fully enacted the world's first equal pay law. What President Biden's Call With Putin Means for U.S.-Russia Relations. Despite an equal pay act that dates back to 1961, Icelandic women still earn, on average, between 14% and 20% less than men. Why should anyone work more and show enthusiasm if she or he stands no chance of getting rewarded for their extra effort? But even there women earn an average of 14 to 18 percent less than men. The equal pay standard is accepted in Iceland as a useful measure for securing equal... A break on private initiative. Anna Lea says workers feel they are stuck at certain wage levels, and that they do not know how to go about getting a pay rise, or whether it is at all possible to get one because the equal pay standard limits their opportunities. “The only thing we learned is that there are very narrow pay gaps between people performing the same job. Companies are free to apply their own criteria and decide just how valuable jobs are. Friðbert also believes the equal pay … With a staff of 28, Byggðastofnun is one of the main employers in Sauðárkrókur. Iceland’s new equal pay legislation has been making international headlines. “I think companies should be able to reward staff who show initiative and skills. From Reykjavík in the south to Sauðárkrókur in the north – companies across Iceland are introducing the equal pay standard which aims to eradicate gender pay gaps. This has yet to change. A few years ago he had a small pay rise as a result of the equal pay standard. The question now is how effective a measure like this will. Iceland has become the first country in the world to force companies to prove they pay all employees the same. ... but lack of political power and equal pay. The Gender Pay Gap = not Cool! Receive Nordic Labour Journal's newsletter nine times a year. Agriculture is key to this region, which gets most of its income from food production. Friðbert also believes the equal pay standard reduces people’s private initiative at work. Iceland's world-first gender pay laws come into effect, requiring businesses with 25 or more employees to prove they are paying men and women fairly to do the same jobs. The Central Bank of Iceland complies with the provisions of the Act on Equal Status and Equal Rights of Women and Men, no. Already in 1961, the Icelandic Parliament approved the Equal Pay Act to ensure equal remuneration for women and men for equal work or work of equal value. Subscribe to the latest news from the Nordic Labour Journal by e-mail. Iceland has become the first country in the world to force companies to prove they pay all employees the same. Iceland is the first country to take the fight against the gender pay gap a step further, requiring companies to proactively get equal pay certification from the government. Anna Lea wants to know whether the equal pay standard makes it impossible for individual workers to secure a pay rise after getting further education for instance, or whether one workers’ pay rise automatically leads to other workers on the same wage level getting the same rise. Still, Iceland’s workforce is thought to be far more progressive on equal pay than that of the U.S., which recently ranked 28th on the WEF report that Iceland topped. Iceland PM on equal pay: It doesn't just happen by sitting and waiting. Aðalsteinn Þorsteinsson, the Director General for Byggðastofnun, explains that regions become vulnerable and that there is a risk of more social problems if there is an imbalance between the genders. The town's population is growing and has reached around 3,000 people. Critics say the standard limits people’s chances to get pay rises or bonuses. The equal pay standard makes this impossible,” saysFriðbert. Now another small country has joined a global effort to try narrow the gap in pay between genders: Iceland. “I think companies should be able to reward staff who show initiative and skills. Aðalsteinn argues the equal pay standard puts the wages into a system where all procedures are documented and all salary decisions are justified. 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