India suffers from huge gender pay gap: Monster Salary Index

Prachi Verma Dadhwal

NEW DELHI: The gender pay gap in India stands at 27%, according to a report by Monster India.

Monster India’s report, released on Tuesday, said in India men earn a median gross hourly salary of Rs 288.68 while women get Rs 207.85 per hour.

The lowest gender pay gap of 17.7% was recorded in the banking, financial services & insurance (BFSI) and transport sectors, the report said, adding that at the other end of the spectrum was the manufacturing sector with a pay gap of 34.9%.

The report covers sectors including IT services, health care, caring services, social work; education, research; financial services, banking, insurance; transport, logistics, communication; construction and technical consultancy; manufacturing and legal and market consultancy, and business activities.

According to the report, some of the reasons behind this gender pay gap could be the preference for male workers over female employees, and preference given to male employees when it comes to promotions to supervisory positions. The report also points out career breaks that women take for parenthood duties and other socio-cultural factors as reasons for the pay gap.

“The situation is far from desired in India, especially when the country is gearing towards inclusive development,” said Sanjay Modi, managing director (India/Middle East/ Southeast Asia/Hong Kong). “While some critics may claim that this gender pay gap is simply due to the choices women make - occupation, family, or education level, but that could not be further from the truth.”