134 years to gender parity? The clock is ticking. And listen to the podcast interview with Elisabeth Prager and Nitika Vyas
Welcome to #277 weekly newsletter from The Purse.
A girl born today will turn 97 years old before she experiences true gender equality. That’s the stark reality, according to JPMorgan’s latest study (US), which estimates that at the current pace, gender parity is still 134 years away.
The gender gap: stuck in slow motion
Despite decades of progress, the numbers tell a sobering story:
Global gender gap: Still at 68.5%, measuring disparities in economic participation, political representation, health, and education.
Pay inequality: In the US, women earn 83 cents for every dollar a man makes. In the UK, the gender pay gap stands at 7% for full-time workers but widens to 13.1% when part-time roles are included.
Boardroom barriers: Women hold just 10% of the top leadership roles (CEO, CFO, COO) globally. In the UK’s FTSE 100, female board members earn on average £335,953, while their male counterparts take home £1,073,445—a 69% pay gap.
European context: Across the EU, women represent just 8.2% of CEOs and 21.2% of executives in the largest listed companies.
Signs of power shifting
Not all the news is grim. Women are quietly gaining ground in ways that matter:
Labour force participation: In the US, it is rising, hitting 65.7%, surpassing pre-pandemic levels.
Homeownership: Single women in the US are buying homes at twice the rate of single men, despite facing higher mortgage rejection rates.
Financial power: Women are set to control $30 trillion+ in wealth over the next decade, largely due to inheritance and rising earnings.
UK perspective: Women's economic inclusion has accounted for 40% of UK economic growth since 2000. Increasing female employment by 5% could add £125 billion to the UK economy annually.
The bottom line
Progress is happening, but it’s moving at a glacial pace. Closing the gender gap by 2030 would require an annual investment of $360 billion—an amount the world has yet to commit. While more women are stepping into financial power, systemic barriers in pay, leadership, and wealth distribution persist.
The question remains: are we willing to wait over a century, or will we demand change now?
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