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Merkel in a message for Women's Day: "Corona could degrade gender equality"

In a video released ahead of International Day, the German Chancellor warned that women were disproportionately affected by the crisis.

According to her, they are required to take care of children who remain in homes, and at the same time maintain their work in industries that have been repeatedly shut down.

EU: "Pandemic has widened gaps in almost all areas of life"

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• Germany

• Angela Merkel

• gender equality

News agencies

Saturday, 06 March 2021, 18:40

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"Make sure the epidemic does not lead to a retreat to old gender constructions."

Merkel, today (Photo: AP)

German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned today (Saturday) that the corona plague is endangering the improvement achieved in gender equality.

According to her, women are the main caregivers of children during the closures initiated as a result of the virus, and their proportion of workers in the affected industries is higher.

"We must make sure that the epidemic does not lead to a retreat to old gender constructions that we thought we had progressed from," she said in a video released ahead of International Women's Day on March 8.

"Once again, women are the ones who need to find the balance between teaching children at home, caring for them and working."

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To the full article

Lack of production in decision-making positions.

Merkel (Photo: AP)

Merkel noted that women have been disproportionately affected by the crisis, while being under-represented in decision-making positions.

"Women make up more than 75% of health care workers, from doctors' offices and hospitals to laboratories and pharmacies," the chancellor said, while only 30% of managerial positions in the field are staffed by women.

"It is not possible for women, to a large extent, to carry our society on their backs, and at the same time not be involved in an egalitarian form in important political, economic, and social decisions," she added.

She welcomed a recent law in Germany that requires companies to include more women on the board, but stressed that more efforts should be made to support women, including through widening day-to-day poverty and comparing salaries.

"It's time for women to earn like men."

Strengthening from the EU

Gender pay gaps in Germany are among the largest in the EU.

In 2019, women earned on average 19% less than men, in part because many of them worked part-time.

The gap drops to 6% compared to women and men in the same jobs.

Merkel's warnings were mentioned in the EU's annual report on gender equality, published earlier this week.

In their study, it was found that the epidemic "intensified the gaps that exist between women and men in almost all areas of life."

In addition to the increase in workload resulting from the closure of schools and kindergartens, the report noted that women are more likely to work for lower wages in the services sector, which was one of the major casualties of the epidemic, raising the chances of being left without a fact.

"It will take years, or even decades, to repair the damage caused by the epidemic."

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