Wage discrimination against women and temporary workers

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A study published in early 2000 reveals the extent to which women and temporary workers in Spain are paid less, for equal work, than men and workers on open-ended contracts

A study conducted by the Fundación Argentaria and published in early 2000 confirms that women are paid less than men for equal work, and that temporary workers are paid less than those on open-ended employment contracts. Wages in Spain (Los salarios en España) finds that the average monthly wages of a male worker on an open-ended contract in 1999 were ESP 287,423 gross (including average overtime pay), compared with ESP 161,923 for all temporary workers, and ESP 211,981 for women on open-ended contracts.

Several factors explain the wage differential between permanent and temporary workers. The former receive seniority bonuses and other bonuses linked to productivity or objectives, whereas the latter usually do not. Moreover, the skills required and the responsibilities of the job are usually lower for temporary workers, and basic wages are also different. Regarding the relationship between men's and women's pay, eliminating differentials accounted for by contract type, seniority or responsibility leaves a 12.5% gap that is explained solely by gender. The simple fact of being a woman means that a worker is worse paid.

The Fundación Argentaria study, based on a sample of 175,000 workers in companies with 10 and more employees, has confirmed the views that the trade unions have held for some time, based on studies of lesser scope and on daily experience. In particular, the findings are seen as confirming the belief that one of the fundamental reasons for Spain's high level of temporary employment is not the uncertainty of the market but the desire of employers to cut labour costs. For employers, the competitiveness of the Spanish economy demands the reduction of wage costs.

From an overall social point of view, specialists tend to explain the maintenance of this clear two-tier pay structure - by type of contract and by gender - by the fact that women and/or temporary workers tend to form part of a family unit in which another person, the husband/father, has a higher and more stable wage. However, this does not explain everything. Another study, recently carried out by the Catholic institution for fighting social exclusion, Cáritas, entitled The conditions of life of the poor population from a territorial perspective (Las condiciones de vida de la población pobre desde la perspectiva territorial) finds that in Spain 8.5 million people are poor because they have to live on less than ESP 35,000 a month. The main contributory factor to poverty is the lack of work (unemployment is three times higher among the poor) or labour precariousness. However, more and more poor homes are supported by women –a situation that has been called the "feminisation of poverty".