It Will take 118 Years to Close the Global Pay Gap Between Men and Woman

According to the authors of the Global Gender Gap Report 2015, it will take another 118 years to close the global pay gap between men and woman, at current pace.  The Global Gender Gap Index, which ranks 145 economies according to how well they are leveraging their female talent pool, based on economic, educational, health-based and political indicators, shows that while the world is making progress – but slowly.  

According to the report, woman are making progress in the global workforce.  In 2006, 1.5 billion woman were employed globally.  By 2015, that number had risen to 1.75 billion.  At the same time, global average earnings of woman have increased from $6,000 per year to $11,000 per year, compared to $11,000 per year and $21,000 per year for me, according to the report.  Woman are now earning more on average, but female incomes are still only on par that earned by their male counterparts – TEN years ago.  

At April Now, we are both inspired and frustrated by the report.  The entrance of a quarter of a billion woman into the global workforce over the last ten years is exciting, and shows that progress is being made at home in North America, but also in developing economies.  But we are upset with the seemingly endless struggle for equal pay, and find the $10K gap between men and woman in 2015 extremely troubling. 
It is a fantastic report full of interesting facts.  We put it on the recommended reading list for woman everywhere – especially those in leadership positions.