Is there really such a thing as a “man’s job” or a “woman’s job”? The economy does not differentiate between jobs based on gender, but in practice we often witness certain jobs being reserved for either women or men. This is in its essence discriminatory against either gender, and the modern society should consider this unacceptable. Gendered jobs are all the more harmful if we consider the fact that women get paid less than men for doing the same jobs.
HOW MUCH DO WOMEN EARN COMPARED TO MEN
According to a Paylab salary survey conducted in 13 countries, including Bosnia and Herzegovina, women in the BiH capital are paid up to 25% less than men for doing the same job. This discrepancy is slightly smaller in other areas in Bosnia and Herzegovina (17.6%). The European Union average is not much better either. According to Eurostat data, the gender pay gap in the European Union is on average 16%.
Paylab data show that only 6% of women in Bosnia and Herzegovina hold some of the highest-paid jobs. The survey, conducted in cooperation with a specialized portal Plata.ba, showed that a male retail worker earns an average of 807.54 KM, compared to 670.29 BAM earned by a female retail worker doing the same job. Another concerning fact is that a large proportion of women – as much as 15% of all employed women in the region – work at minimum wage jobs, compared to just 7% of men.
HOW TO CHOOSE A HIGH SCHOOL
Just like the economy doesn’t require jobs to be gendered, education doesn’t inherently limit genders to specific fields. There are no schools that are exclusively meant for either boys or girls, but data shows that boys are more likely to enroll in vocational schools. In the 2018/2019 academic year, over 16,000 boys and just over 6,000 girls were enrolled in secondary vocational schools in Bosnia and Herzegovina. These circumstances gave rise to unequal and unfair treatment of girls and boys in some professions. At no point should gender be considered as a factor in deciding who gets accepted to which school what grades someone gets, or what school they should apply to. So, the answer to the question above is: each child should choose a high school that is the best match for their preferences, talents and interest and the most appropriate choice given the circumstances and options available. It is high time we all adopt zero tolerance for gender discrimination.
There is no such thing as a “man’s job” or a “woman’s job”, just like there’s no such thing as a “girl” school or a “boy” school! The entire society has to get involved in fighting these labels until they are gone entirely. Parents and the education system should be committed to protecting students and encouragingchildren to enroll in high schools they prefer and are drawn to.
In addition to its regular activities, the “Technical Vocational Education and Training in Bosnia and Herzegovina” project implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the Governments of Switzerland and the Federal Republic of Germany, seeks, also, to raise the awareness of the importance of gender equality in education system, i.e. gender-responsive education, and motivate girls/young women to opt to enrol in schools, i.e. to apply for a profession that suits their interests, talents and skills, irrespective of stereotypes and prejudices relating to “male” and “female” occupations. Trainings for teachers from partner secondary vocational and technical schools are planned, within this Project, for the coming period with a view to familiarizing the teaching staff with the concept of gender equality in the TVET context, but also with a view to creating, jointly, practical tools and guidelines on how to efficiently include gender perspective in structures, systems, programmes and activities of technical vocational education and training in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Project is committed to improving technical vocational education and training in Bosnia and Herzegovina that will offer knowledge and skills for the future to young men and women and quality and competitive staff in the labour market to employers.
