Pay gaps between men and women are steadily shrinking. However, for the self-employed, income disparities remain phenomenal. This appears in De Standaard and Het Nieuwsblad on the basis of figures from the National Institute for the Self-employed Social Security (INASTI).
Thus self-employed men earn an average 50% more than their female colleagues. The figures are 31,549 euros, compared to 20,410 euros.
The gap between these two totals is explained by the sectors in which men and women choose to work.
However, there are also differences within the same sector. In retail, for example, a man earns an average of 11,000 euros more than a woman.
Barbara Ortiz, a specialist from the Institute for Female and Male Equality explains, “On the one hand, there is the weight of gender stereotypes, owing to which women have to prove themselves more. Customers may also unconsciously convey stereotypes.”
Ms Ortiz goes on, “On the other hand, women have more often undertaken tasks within families. This is thus difficult to combine with a business, from which a woman may then draw less financially.”
The above explanation comes from Barbara Ortiz, a specialist from the Institute for Female and Male Equality.
The Brussels Times
