KUCHING: Gender income inequalities are unlikely to occur in the civil service as the grading and pay structure are based on merit, performance and objectives.
Welfare, Women and Family Development Minister Datuk Fatimah Abdullah said this yesterday in response to a report by the National Statistics Department indicating a widening income gap between men and women in Malaysia.
“In the civil sector, the principle of equal remuneration between men and women for work of equal value applies,” she told The Borneo Post.
“For example, directors of bureaus or even teachers, get equal pay irrespective of gender or race and which is determined based on developed criteria. Therefore, I don’t think there is such discrimination in the civil service to say that men will be paid higher. This is very clear.”
The report on Tuesday revealed that men still earn more than women in Malaysia for doing the same jobs, except in the construction industry, and the wage gap between the sexes is widening.
According to the National Statistics Department’s Salaries and Wages Survey Report 2013, men earn an average of RM2,260 a month compared with RM2,071 for women or a difference of 8.4 per cent.
In 2012, men earned an average of RM2,083 a month against RM1,912 for women — a difference of 8.2 per cent.
For the private sector, Fatimah said companies and organisations may have different remuneration systems.
“So we cannot make the comparison as we have to look at various factors. However, if there appears to be a subtle kind of discrimination then women should voice it out,” she said, emphasising that such bias needed to be made known publicly.
“Otherwise, it will be unfair to women particularly and if covered up, the problem may be viewed as normal.”
She advised the private sector to study the pay structure practised by the civil service.
The report also showed that skilled female workers saw their male colleagues getting paid 39.7 per cent more (RM588), male service and sales workers were paid 34.9 per cent more (RM610) and those in elementary or basic occupations 28.9 per cent more (RM327).
Only the construction industry saw women earning more than men with a 13.1 per cent difference (RM224) as they were more focused in skilled or semi-skilled
areas compared to male workers, who tended to be low-skilled workers.
Urban areas also saw men earning more than women, with an 8 per cent gap (RM184), while in rural areas, women earned RM51.50 more than men (3.6 per cent).
Some areas also saw men being paid more, with Johor (16 per cent), Kuala Lumpur (15.6 per cent) and Putrajaya (14.4 per cent) leading the way.
Women had better pay in Kelantan and Sabah, with a difference of 24.6 per cent and 13.5 per cent respectively.
However, the National Statistics Department did not provide an explanation for the increasing gender income gap.
The survey polled 49,216 samples known as ‘living quarters’, which included households and individuals aged between 12 and 64.