“Strike on work, domestic tasks and consumption”: as International Women's Rights Day approaches on March 8, feminist associations and unions are calling for general mobilization like the walkouts observed in Spain and in Iceland in recent years.
The idea is “that women stop all paid activities (and men too), all domestic tasks (childcare, care, cleaning, cooking, etc.) and consumption to bring society to a standstill and demonstrate that women, far from being an adjustment variable, are an essential cog in society,” writes the #GrèveFéministe collective in a press release.
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The collective, which brings together feminist associations, unions and associations (Family Planning, Dare Feminism, CGT, Unef, etc.), denounces in particular sexism which is “taking root more and more in public opinion”, an “increase in violence declared sexual relations", Emmanuel Macron's support for Gérard Depardieu prosecuted for rape or the head of state's recent call for "demographic rearmament".
He calls for the “revalorization of feminized professions (education, care, cleaning, etc.)”, equal pay, “the establishment of non-sexist education” and education in emotional and sexual life or even a “ equal sharing of domestic tasks.
On March 8, 2018, a feminist strike in Spain resulted in a two-hour work stoppage observed, according to the two main Spanish unions, by 5.9 million workers in the country.
15% salary gap on average
This walkout was inspired by a similar movement in 1975 in Iceland when 90% of Icelandic women took part in a day of work stoppage which paved the way for major advances in equality between women and men in the country.
In October 2023, thousands of women, including Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir, stopped work again to demand equal pay and protest against violence against women.
Following #FeministStrike on Monday, five trade union organizations (CFDT, CGT, UNSA, FSU and Solidaires) also called for mobilization on March 8, “including through strikes”, to obtain “action”.
“Despite the effects of government announcements to make the cause of women the great cause of the five-year term, inequalities persist in the workplace, in the home and in society,” they deplore in a joint press release.
“Let’s not let old-fashioned, sexist, masculinist speeches pass.
We no longer want promises, we want actions.
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According to INSEE figures, in 2021, in the private sector, for identical working hours, the average salary of women is 15% lower than that of men.