Pay transparency and a cultural shift for real gender pay equality

Abstract

This paper depicts a picture of the gender pay gap in Malta, which continued to increase to 12.2% in 2017. Recent years have seen an increase in the number of women in employment, but this has mainly been in the lower-end salary scales of the labour market and in part-time work, which have both partially contributed to a widening of the gender pay gap. Maltese women’s traditional role has been as a housemaker: even for those who were in the labour market, the expectations usually were and possibly continue to be, that it is the woman who leaves her job to take up the responsibilities of the family - children, the elderly and other relatives. Although legislation in terms of equal pay has been in place since 1976, there are many issues, which continue to impede real gender pay equality, including a patriarchal culture, strong male networks, family-friendly measures mainly taken up by females, career breaks, lack of transparency in pay structures, job segregation, and societal gender biases.