Four day work week could close gender pay gap, argues women’s rights group

Moving to a shorter working week could help to close the gender pay gap, according to a new report released today.

When unpaid and paid work is combined, women continue to work longer hours than men but for less money, while overwork and overproduction are a direct cause of climate change, the Women’s Budget Group said today.

Based on time-use data and evidence from the impact of Covid-19 on working patterns, the WBG researchers found that men increased the time they spent on unpaid care during the first phase of the pandemic in response to a decline in their paid work and an increase in care needs.