IndustriALL to Launch Pay Equity Training Modules on International Women’s Day 2025
On 8 March 2025, IndustriALL Global Union will officially launch its new pay equity training modules to support its affiliates in addressing gender pay gaps through collective bargaining. This practical tool is designed to strengthen trade unions’ capacity to place the value of work at the center of wage negotiations. The modules, developed with the support of the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES), include slides and trainer notes to facilitate their implementation.
Building on the IndustriALL Pay Equity Toolkit published in 2022, the modules focus on three core strategies to eliminate the gender pay gap:
- Pay Transparency and Gender Pay Gap Reporting
- How to calculate a gender pay gap
- What data should be reported
- How unions can advocate for gender pay gap reporting
- Gender-Neutral Job Evaluation
- Identifying how women’s skills are undervalued
- Comparing the value of different jobs fairly
- Eliminating gender bias in job classification and evaluation
- Campaigning for Living Wages
- Strategies for bargaining and campaigning for living wages
- Addressing low pay among women workers
Successful Pilots in Africa and Turkey
The modules have already been tested in training programs for IndustriALL affiliates in Sub-Saharan Africa and Turkey. Following training sessions in Africa, trade unions conducted gender pay gap surveys in companies across Uganda, Ghana, and Kenya. The findings were integrated into collective bargaining efforts, with unions advocating for gender-sensitive HR policies, salary reviews, and transparent promotion criteria to ensure equal opportunities for women.
“These modules provide trade unions and members of their collective bargaining teams with practical tools for negotiating an end to the gender pay gap. I encourage them to use this new tool, which can be easily adapted to each national context,”
— Armelle Seby, IndustriALL Director for Gender and White-Collar Workers.
The Role of Collective Bargaining in Pay Equity
Research confirms that collective bargaining is an effective mechanism for reducing gender pay disparities and ensuring transparent wage systems. When unions engage in wage negotiations, studies show that the gender pay gap narrows significantly.
With the launch of these training modules on International Women’s Day 2025, IndustriALL aims to empower trade unions worldwide to take concrete steps towards achieving fair pay for all.
Credit: IndustriAll Global Union
