Gender Pay Equity – Asrar Qureshi’s Blog Post #1164

Gender Pay Equity – Asrar Qureshi’s Blog Post #1164

Dear Colleagues! This is Asrar Qureshi’s Blog Post #1164 for Pharma Veterans. Pharma    Veterans Blogs are published by Asrar Qureshi on its dedicated site https://pharmaveterans.com. Please email to pharmaveterans2017@gmail.com  for publishing your contributions here.

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Preamble

This post is based on various reports on this subject.

Closing the 20% Gap: The Urgent Case for Gender Pay Equity

Despite decades of advocacy, women around the world still earn, on average, 20 percent less than men for equivalent work. That means women receive only 80 cents for every dollar paid to men—a global wage gap that persists even after accounting for differences in roles, education, or experience.

UN Women has intensified its call to close this gap, not merely as a moral imperative but as a vital economic necessity.

Why the 20 % Gap Still Persists Globally

Structural and Occupational Segregation

One of the key forces behind the gender wage gap is occupational segregation—women disproportionately clustering in lower-wage sectors (care, retail, administration) while men dominate higher-paying technical or leadership roles.

Even within the same occupation, women are more likely to be in less senior or less remunerated roles.

The “Motherhood Penalty” & Care Burdens

Women often face a “motherhood penalty”: time away from the workforce (maternity leave), part-time work, or flexible hours to manage caregiving responsibilities. These factors reduce continuity, limit growth opportunities, and contribute to lower cumulative pay.

Additionally, women globally perform far more unpaid care work than men, which further constrains their time, energy, and mobility in the labor market.

Discrimination and Bias

Despite laws prohibiting pay discrimination in many countries, biases, both explicit and implicit, persist. Managers may undervalue women’s contributions, promote men more readily, or offer higher raises to men.

Research in specific markets (e.g. analysis of large resume and job dataset in China) suggests that a significant portion of wage differences can be attributed to discrimination, especially among married women.

Lack of Pay Transparency and Weak Enforcement

Even when equal-pay legislation exists, lack of transparency around compensation makes it hard to detect inequities. Few countries enforce strict penalties. Many employers resist disclosing pay scales. Without accountability, the gap continues.

Limited Access to Upskilling, Networks, & Leadership Pipelines

Women often have less access to training, mentorship, and networks that open pathways to higher-paying roles. In many places, the pipeline to senior leadership skews male, reinforcing pay disparities upward.

The gender pay gap is not just unfair; it’s wasteful, inefficient, and damaging to societies and economies.

Closing Pakistan’s Gender Pay Gap: A 2030 Agenda for Equality

Across the globe, women earn less than men for equivalent work, with the average gap standing at 20%. In Pakistan, the challenge is even more pronounced. According to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) and World Bank data, Pakistani women earn roughly 34% less than men on average, one of the largest gaps in South Asia. This disparity is not only a violation of fairness; it is a major obstacle to Pakistan’s economic growth and social development.

With less than five years to go before 2030, the deadline for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Pakistan faces an urgent question: how can the country close its gender pay gap and unlock the potential of half its population?

Why the Pay Gap Persists in Pakistan

Pakistani women are disproportionately concentrated in low-wage, informal sectors, such as agriculture, textiles, domestic work, and teaching at primary levels. Men dominate higher-paying fields like engineering, IT, banking, and management.

Even within the same profession, say, healthcare, male doctors typically earn more than female doctors, partly due to men being more likely to hold senior administrative posts. This “vertical segregation” reinforces the wage divide.

Over 70% of employed women in Pakistan work in the informal economy, where there is little to no wage regulation, job security, or social protection. Wages are often paid in cash without contracts, making monitoring of equal pay nearly impossible.

On top of this, Pakistani women perform 10 times more unpaid care work than men, childcare, eldercare, household chores, which limits their time and ability to pursue higher-paying opportunities.

Cultural expectations place disproportionate caregiving burdens on women. Many employers assume that female workers will eventually prioritize family over career, leading to fewer promotions, smaller raises, or outright hiring discrimination.

Despite Article 25 of Pakistan’s Constitution guaranteeing equality, wage discrimination persists. Employers often undervalue women’s contributions, and women frequently have less negotiating power when it comes to pay discussions. In some cases, cultural stigmas discourage women from even raising the issue of pay equity.

Pakistan does not have robust pay transparency laws. Companies are not required to disclose pay scales or conduct wage audits by gender. Labor inspectors rarely enforce existing protections, and legal redress mechanisms are weak and inaccessible.

Pakistani women face barriers in accessing higher education, digital tools, and professional networks. With only 26% female labor force participation (one of the lowest in South Asia), the pipeline into leadership is thin, keeping wage gaps entrenched.

Why Closing the Gap Matters

According to the World Bank, if Pakistan narrowed its gender gap in labor participation and pay, GDP could rise by 30% or more. With the economy under pressure from inflation, debt, and slow growth, pay equity is not a luxury; it is a necessity.

Women’s earnings directly improve household welfare. In Pakistan, where many households rely on a single income, empowering women to earn more can reduce poverty rates and improve child nutrition and education outcomes.

Pay equity contributes to fairness and dignity, reducing gender-based inequalities that can feed resentment and social tensions. In Pakistan, where gender disparities are stark, equal pay would be a powerful signal of inclusion.

Vision 2030: What Success Could Look Like

Imagine a Pakistan in 2030 where:

Women’s labor force participation has risen from 26% to at least 40%.

The wage gap has narrowed from 34% to under 10%.

Care infrastructure allows women to pursue careers without penalty.

Companies publicly disclose pay equity data as a matter of routine.

Women occupy 30% of leadership positions across sectors.

Such a Pakistan would not only be fairer but also richer, more competitive, and more cohesive.

Sum Up

Closing the gender pay gap in Pakistan is not simply about fairness. It is about unlocking growth, reducing poverty, and building a resilient economy. It is about ensuring that Pakistan’s daughters are not condemned to earn less than their brothers for the same effort.

Time is short. Without decisive action, the gap will persist for generations. But with bold reforms, cultural shifts, and shared commitment, Pakistan can move decisively toward pay equity by 2030.

The question is not whether Pakistan can afford to close the pay gap. The real question is: can Pakistan afford not to?

Concluded.

Disclaimers: Pictures in these blogs are taken from free resources at Pexels, Pixabay, Unsplash, and Google. Credit is given where available. If a copyright claim is lodged, we shall remove the picture with appropriate regrets.

For most blogs, I research from several sources which are open to public. Their links are mentioned under references. There is no intent to infringe upon anyone’s copyrights. If, any claim is lodged, it will be acknowledged and duly recognized immediately.