What is wage discrimination based on gender? Systematically paying lower wages and/or reduced benefits to women or minorities not based on objective differences in the work performed, seniority, education, qualifications, experience, or productivity.

How does wage discrimination affect health workers? Paying different wages to health workers for the same job responsibilities based on their sex violates their rights to equal remuneration.

Gender pay gaps may also be a result of vertical occupational segregation, which is visible in the underrepresentation of female health workers in the highest pay grades. In addition, there may be horizontal occupational segregation, such that job seen as “male jobs” may be better remunerated than those perceived as “female jobs.” Please refer to the occupational segregation section for more on this.