The delegate of the Government of Spain in Andalusia, Pedro Fernández, accompanied by the delegate of the ONCE in Andalusia the ONCE in Andalusia, Ceuta and Melilla, Cristóbal Martínez, and of the secretaries-general of UGT-A, Carmen Castilla, and of CC.OO-A, Nuria López, has presided today the presentation of the coupon that the ONCE dedicates next Wednesday, February 22 to commemorate the International Day of Wage Equality between Men and Women, a struggle that, in Fernández’s opinion, “must be eradicated every day because it is our social justice”.
During the event, in which the president of the Territorial Council of the ONCE, Isabel Viruet, also participated, Pedro Fernández thanked the ONCE for once again helping to make this “injustice” visible through the more than five million coupons “that will serve to claim what we all share here today”, a fight that, he explained, “must begin from the pre-labor stage, through education and training, not marking itineraries based on sex, and continue in the active stage, fighting against that near 22% wage gap that still exists today between men and women who work in the same labor category.”
In addition, she recalled that women represent 52% of the population “and yet, not only do they suffer lower pay conditions, but they also suffer an empowerment gap to occupy positions of responsibility”, situations that subsequently result in an economic difference in contributory pensions, “where the responsibilities assigned to women throughout their lives in periods of maternity leave or care” influence.
To combat this reality, Fernández has reviewed the measures that the Government of Spain has put in place since 2019 and has referred to the Royal Decree-Law 6/2019, of March 1, on urgent measures to guarantee equal treatment and opportunities between women and men in employment and occupation; the measures introduced in the Labor Reform, “multiplying by five the number of indefinite contracts”; the increase of the Minimum Interprofessional Wage (SMI) to 1,080 euros, “especially benefiting women and young workers”; the Royal Decree-Law No. “The government is aware that we must continue in this fight to eradicate inequality and I am convinced that we are going to achieve it,” he concluded.