21.04.19
European Union - The EU delegation of MMM responded to the public consultation of the European Commission on 'equal pay' in April 2019 which gathered views from stakeholders on the impact of the EU rules on equal pay for work of equal value.
In November 2017, the Commission adopted an Action Plan to tackle the Gender Pay Gap. The objective of the consultation was to assess if the current legal framework needs to be reviewed. The Gender Pay Gap is at 16% at EU level and it is stagnating in many countries.
In our response, we highlighted that the Gender Pay Gap is the result of many complex factors including vertical and horizontal occupational segregation, as well as direct pay discrimination, but that it is mainly linked to motherhood. In our society, women, especially mothers, perform the largest share of unpaid care work (i.e. household work, caring for children, disabled person, frail and older people), a work which is not valued. As a result, mothers suffer from specific discriminations linked to motherhood, the so-called “motherhood penalty“, which includes a motherhood wage gap, i.e. a difference in wages between mothers and women without children.
MMM also underlined that women’s unequal pay does not just hurt women, but that it is a cost for society as a whole. There is also a strong link between the gender pay gap and child poverty.
Our report presents the state of play of the gender pay gap in the European Union, the underlying causes and links to the unequal distribution of unpaid family care work, a summary of the current situation in Belgium, and finally some recommendations.
The fact that mothers suffer a wage penalty raises major concerns that go beyond gender inequality. This issue ultimately questions the capacity of societies to manage a sustainable balance between their economic aim of active female participation in paid work and the social aims of providing a fair distribution of income to support the reproduction and rearing of children.
MMM Response to the Consultation and Annex
11.10.23
UN Geneva, Human Rights Council - Entitled ‘Centrality of care and support from a human rights perspective’, this landmark resolution was presented by the governments of Argentina, Iceland, Mexico
20.06.23
It was by all accounts, a remarkable gathering of global peacemakers. They came from all over the world to lend their voice and support to the message of the Conference:
09.10.23
In June this year, the European Union (EU) Commission announced a new high-priority initiative to address the mental health of all Europeans.
20.04.24
In a timely joint statement, we at Make mothers Matter, along with 16 European NGOs, have urged EU policymakers to prioritise long-term care in the upcoming 2024-2029 legislature. This call comes as the Belgian
26.03.24
UN Geneva - As the 55th session of the Human Rights council wraps up, here is an overview of our contributions to the discussions that took place on a wide range of topics. Our aim with all our interventions wa
24.03.24
UN New York, CSW68 - These wise words, uttered by of one of the speakers at our event, Let's change the narrative: invest in mothers, sums up the challenges faced by mothers. Organised online on the margins of
11.03.24
UN New York, CSW68 - Join us for a discussion on changing the narrative in support of mothers - an online parallel event to the 68th UN Commission on the Status of Women
01.03.24
MMM as founding member, is pleased to announce the launch of Be Family®, a bold and new movement that aims to ensure companies and organisations act inclusively and responsibly towards families and people with
01.03.24
UN Geneva, Human Rights Council - - Co-organised with a group of Child Rights organisations, we invite you to join us for this hybrid event which will take place around the HRC's annual day of the rights of the