Stagnant gender pay gap “unacceptable”

The wage gap has stagnated for over a decade in Singapore – what can employers and the government do to close the gap?

BY Nurhuda Syed 01 Mar 2018

More should be done to close Singapore’s gender pay gap. The lack of progress in closing the gap is “unacceptable”, said Daniel Goh, a Non-Constituency Member of Parliament (NCMP) on Tuesday.

The NCMP pointed to a study that showed how the gender pay gap in Singapore has remained the same for over a decade (2006 to 2016). This suggested that women generally earn $610 lesser than men in their median monthly income, Goh said.

The pay gap will affect the retirement security of women, Goh added, who are already paying a higher premium.

Goh also urged the government to look into providing more support for women re-entering the workforce, reported Yahoo News.

“Little recognition is given by employers and the government to the years women spend in service to the family…By the time women try to return to the workforce, they face triple the challenges of making sure their skills stay relevant, discrimination against older workers and wage stagnation compared to male peers,” he said.

According to a study conducted by the NUS Business School in 2017, a general 10% pay gap exists for Singaporean women across various sectors and professional levels. Those who do make it to the top face an additional 43.2% gender pay gap as compared to their male peers.