All work deserves a salary. But starting November 10 at 11:31 and 22 seconds, women will work for free*. This symbolic count is carried out by the newsletter Les Glorieuses with the aim of raising awareness about salary inequalities between men and women. On the contrary, if women earned as much as men, they would logically earn until December 31.
This way of presenting pay inequalities is a way for the feminist newsletter to powerfully illustrate the pay gap between men and women. Every year since 2016, Les Glorieuses have communicated this date and even turned it into a hashtag.
Compared to last year, the situation has improved slightly. In fact, women have gained two days, since in 2024 the date on which they theoretically had to stop working due to salary inequalities was November 8.
“Transparency prevents employers from favoring men”
According to the latest INSEE data, women earn on average 14.2% less than men for the same hours of work.
In its statement, the media outlet, headed by economist Rebecca Amsellem, proposes solutions to reduce this wage gap and advocates, in particular, greater wage transparency in companies. “Transparency allows female employees to know their fair compensation and prevents employers from favoring men,” the press release argues.
A European directive on the subject must also be transposed into French legislation before June 2026. Companies with more than 100 employees must publish the pay difference between women and men, and correct it if it is unjustified and greater than 5%. It also provides for the possibility for employees to receive information on the average levels of remuneration, by sex and by category of workers who perform work of the same value.
Revalue predominantly female professions
Las Gloriosas also suggest making public aid and public contracts conditional on companies that respect equal pay. “It is a zero-cost measure, already recommended by the High Council for Gender Equality,” the bulletin argues. It also advocates for an improvement in predominantly female professions. “Women represent 90% of nurses, 87% of midwives and 65% of teaching staff.
Finally, and because the wage gap widens even further with the arrival of the first child, it proposes establishing equivalent parental leave for both parents in order to “fight against stereotypes and promote real professional equality.”
* If women were paid the same hourly rate as men while maintaining their current annual income, they would symbolically stop earning on Monday, November 10 at 11:31 hours and 22 seconds.
Source: BFM TV
