Gender Gap, Labour Standards & Free Trade

How aware are you?  How aware should you be? 

The gender gap is a serious problem. However not as many people are as aware of it there were in the 20^th century when women were fighting simply for the rights to vote and run for office. It’s believed that because women can now vote, run for office, get jobs that are closer to the level men operate at that we are equal. But that is not true and Laurie Milton is correct in the fact that there are many capable women out there who could reside on boards yet aren’t given the chance to do so. Women are also expected to have a larger role in child rearing which means that when they have children they likely take jobs that take less time or stay with the job they have then and don’t move up the corporate ladder so that they can spend more time with their kids. Men don’t have to do this and their hours of unpaid work are much lower. This shows inequality between men and women still exists.

In some ways unions are a good thing. They stand up for their members rights when no one else will. By promoting their members interests over the interests of all others they are able to lower their demands to make everyone happy. Labour standards are important for the safety of workers. Countries shouldn’t have to wait until economic growth arrives before working in safe, non-health threatening conditions.

Free trade is a movement that has been building over decades and is now widely known. Producers deserve a larger part of the profits as they are the ones who grow the food or create the product. The rest of the companies are simply go betweens, connecting the producers to the consumers. When you buy a product with a free trade label you don’t have to feel guilty that someone was harmed in the making of it. You know that the people who deserve the money are getting it and that other people are making the money based on services rendered. Free trade is something that balances economic, social and environmental concerns.