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> The primary goal here is to get the uncorrected pay gap down to 0%, it is now around 10% in Iceland. For those unfamiliar with these terms, the uncorrected p

> The primary goal here is to get the uncorrected pay gap down to 0%, it is now around 10% in Iceland. For those unfamiliar with these terms, the uncorrected pay gap is just the raw difference between men's and women's pay. So men and women being paid perfectly equal in the same job, but women picking jobs with less pay results in an uncorrected pay gap despite equal pay for equal work. I'm not sure how this is going to happen unless A) the government severely restricts people's work options so that each field has 50/50 gender ratios, or B) deliberately unequal pay for equal work is introduced to counteract women's choices of employment (so paying a man less for doing equal work, to make up for the fact that women tend to prioritize work life balance and safety over salary).

runarberg 3y ago
As an anti-capitalist I have my theories on how this would happen. During the strike there was a loud anti-patriarchy sentiment both among the organizers and among the crowd. You can spot many signs saying „Fokk Feðraveldið“ (or “fuck the patriarchy”). In many feminist theories the pay-gap and patriarchy are tightly coupled, you can’t get rid of one without the other, so many feminists tackle the patriarchy directly. I personally go a little further and tackle capitalism among these (as do many other feminists; though not as visible in today’s strike). In my mind the only reason it seems impossible to close the uncorrected gender pay gap is that the capitalist class are majority men, and our capitalist system will unfairly and unevenly take the profits generated from workers (many of whom women) and steer them towards the bosses and shareholders (most of whom men). I think the organizers are thinking something similar, except they didn’t state the anti-capitalist part out loud. Dismantling the patriarchy means stopping this system where men are the owner and shareholders and hold all the power in government and among the business elite. For some—e.g. the Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir, who was also striking today—this may mean bringing women to the top, but for many of the organizers this probably means bringing the men at the top down, among the system which favors them.
- Manuel_D 3y ago
  Perhaps the bigger picture is that the corrected pay gap - not the uncorrected pay gap - is what so societies should focus on fixing. Which is more fair: * A society where boys and girls are told they can't study in the field of their choice because of their gender because the government wants equal representation. * A society where boys and girls are free to study whatever they want, and are given equal pay for equal work.
  - runarberg 3y ago
    I think you might be misunderstanding my and many feminist reasoning (or you might also just not agree with it, which is fair). Nobody is asking girls, boys, and non-binary kids to study one thing over the other, or to pursue a certain career over the other to fix the uncorrected pay-gap. Rather the focus is on removing systematic barriers which hinders certain careers from being valued as much others. It isn’t a coincidence that CEOs are being payed a ridiculous amount of money despite not contributing all that much, while nurses have to suffer austerity after austerity with their paycheck mirroring. These are examples of systematic barriers which feminists wish to remove. I know very few (probably none) feminists which are asking for equal representation among CEOs, rather they want CEOs to be valued for what they are, and instead the profit going to the workers. The corrected pay-gap isn’t a big deal in Iceland. I think they’ve even stopped measuring it because it was deemed a distraction from the equality that most people actually want. Instead some feminists in Iceland actually want to go in the other direction and look at the total wage gap (which also takes into account unpayed lost work).
    - megaman821 3y ago
      What does that look like? Does the government just take over wage setting? I don't think bureaucrats could do that well. It is beyond human ability to take into account all the relevant variables to come up with a fair wage.
      - runarberg 3y ago
        While feminists largely agree on the problem (there are systemic barriers created by patriarchy) there is certainly less consensus around solution. My take on solutions involves dismantling capitalism. My take is not super realistic and other have more tangible options. But this is the reason there is a general strike rather then a petition to pass a specific bill. This strike in particular is not payed by the unions, but rather it is assumed that employers also want the same thing (equal pay) and participate by giving the striking workers their salary. Most actually do, but there are some that don’t. If you think you know the type of business that won’t give striking women their pay when they are fighting for equal pay, even when most businesses do, you are probably correct. So the organizers are actually planning on publishing a shame list (isl. Tossalist) naming the employers who don’t value gender equality, effectively exposing their pink-washing. I think the hope is that exposing them will make it easier to push them into doing better,

runarberg 3y ago

As an anti-capitalist I have my theories on how this would happen. During the strike there was a loud anti-patriarchy sentiment both among the organizers and among the crowd. You can spot many signs saying „Fokk Feðraveldið“ (or “fuck the patriarchy”). In many feminist theories the pay-gap and patriarchy are tightly coupled, you can’t get rid of one without the other, so many feminists tackle the patriarchy directly. I personally go a little further and tackle capitalism among these (as do many other feminists; though not as visible in today’s strike). In my mind the only reason it seems impossible to close the uncorrected gender pay gap is that the capitalist class are majority men, and our capitalist system will unfairly and unevenly take the profits generated from workers (many of whom women) and steer them towards the bosses and shareholders (most of whom men). I think the organizers are thinking something similar, except they didn’t state the anti-capitalist part out loud. Dismantling the patriarchy means stopping this system where men are the owner and shareholders and hold all the power in government and among the business elite. For some—e.g. the Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir, who was also striking today—this may mean bringing women to the top, but for many of the organizers this probably means bringing the men at the top down, among the system which favors them.

Manuel_D 3y ago
Perhaps the bigger picture is that the corrected pay gap - not the uncorrected pay gap - is what so societies should focus on fixing. Which is more fair: * A society where boys and girls are told they can't study in the field of their choice because of their gender because the government wants equal representation. * A society where boys and girls are free to study whatever they want, and are given equal pay for equal work.
- runarberg 3y ago
  I think you might be misunderstanding my and many feminist reasoning (or you might also just not agree with it, which is fair). Nobody is asking girls, boys, and non-binary kids to study one thing over the other, or to pursue a certain career over the other to fix the uncorrected pay-gap. Rather the focus is on removing systematic barriers which hinders certain careers from being valued as much others. It isn’t a coincidence that CEOs are being payed a ridiculous amount of money despite not contributing all that much, while nurses have to suffer austerity after austerity with their paycheck mirroring. These are examples of systematic barriers which feminists wish to remove. I know very few (probably none) feminists which are asking for equal representation among CEOs, rather they want CEOs to be valued for what they are, and instead the profit going to the workers. The corrected pay-gap isn’t a big deal in Iceland. I think they’ve even stopped measuring it because it was deemed a distraction from the equality that most people actually want. Instead some feminists in Iceland actually want to go in the other direction and look at the total wage gap (which also takes into account unpayed lost work).
  - megaman821 3y ago
    What does that look like? Does the government just take over wage setting? I don't think bureaucrats could do that well. It is beyond human ability to take into account all the relevant variables to come up with a fair wage.
    - runarberg 3y ago
      While feminists largely agree on the problem (there are systemic barriers created by patriarchy) there is certainly less consensus around solution. My take on solutions involves dismantling capitalism. My take is not super realistic and other have more tangible options. But this is the reason there is a general strike rather then a petition to pass a specific bill. This strike in particular is not payed by the unions, but rather it is assumed that employers also want the same thing (equal pay) and participate by giving the striking workers their salary. Most actually do, but there are some that don’t. If you think you know the type of business that won’t give striking women their pay when they are fighting for equal pay, even when most businesses do, you are probably correct. So the organizers are actually planning on publishing a shame list (isl. Tossalist) naming the employers who don’t value gender equality, effectively exposing their pink-washing. I think the hope is that exposing them will make it easier to push them into doing better,