On 27 October an information session on good practices in implementing the principle of equal pay for equal work between women and men and the principles of women’s empowerment was held for members of the Association of Electronics Companies in Moldova (ACEM). This activity is part of the information campaign on the need and value of implementing the principle of equal pay for equal work, launched in August by the Economic Council in partnership with UN Women and with financial support from Sweden.

The event brought together founders of enterprises, directors of companies, heads of vocational schools and centres of excellence in the electronics sector, who were informed about how to ensure salary transparency for employees and job seekers, as well as on the right of employees to request and receive information on salary levels, disaggregated by sex, for categories of employees performing equal work or work of equal value. Companies in the electronics industry were also informed on best practices for equal treatment of workers and procedures for reporting the gender pay gap.

Experts of the Economic Council Secretariat, noted during the information session that companies will only benefit from wage transparency, because both those who are looking for work and those who are already working pay attention primarily to wages. The recruitment and remuneration process needs to be conducted in accessible, non-discriminatory, and understandable language. While lack of information from employers on how salaries are set can lead to dissatisfaction and demotivation of employees and lower work productivity in the company.

At the same time, companies in the electronics industry were informed by UN Women consultant, Lucia Ușurelu on the seven Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) and the global corporate initiative launched three decades ago by UN Women in partnership with the UN Global Compact to support private sector companies in overcoming the multiple challenges to achieving gender equality and women’s economic inclusion.

Lucia Ușurelu also noted that the principles contain a number of considerations to help the private sector adapt more easily the elements of promoting gender equality in the workplace, the market, and the community. These include setting clear company-wide goals for gender equality, full participation of women across the private sector, from company management to the production process and supply chain, supporting employees as parents and tutors with useful services, resources, and information, and more.

In the end, companies in the electronics sector were encouraged to adopt internal policies that will facilitate the implementation of the principle of equal pay for work of equal value and to align with the global implementation process of WEPs by signing the declaration of support.

This action is part of the Roadmap for Women’s Economic Empowerment developed by the Secretariat of the Economic Council under the Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova, with the support of UN Women and the financial support of Sweden.

The Secretariat of the Economic Council to the Prime Minister is supported by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, funded by the UK Government’s Good Governance Fund, and the International Finance Corporation’s Investment Climate Reform Project funded by the Government of Sweden’s International Development Agency.

The Secretariat of the Economic Council to the Prime Minister is supported by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, funded by the UK Government’s Good Governance Fund.