Today, woman around the globe
have less access to power, wealth, and education than men.
But one tiny island is leading the world
in bridging these gaps.
Iceland is pioneering ways
to get more mothers back to work,
to root out gender stereotypes,
and to close the pay gap.
It's a human rights issue, isn't it?
Paying the same wage for equally valuable jobs.
Could Iceland inspire the world to solve
one of it's greatest problems?
Iceland has topped gender equality rankings
for nearly a decade.
One of the secrets to their success: start early.
This kindergarten in the capital of Reykjavik
focuses on challenging extreme gender stereotypes
before they take root in boys and girls.
It's a mission that's led to the creation of
17 schools across this tiny country.
All focused on developing a healthy balance of
characteristics in both sexes.
Girls and boys are separated
to allow girls to nurture traits
traditionally viewed as masculine,
like being bold,
independent,
and taking risks.
And boys are given time to learn traits traditionally
viewed as feminine.
Like being more group oriented,
empathetic,
and caring.
And the signs are that this is working.
Research suggests that in later years,
children from this school have a greater understanding of
gender equality when compared to children
from other schools.
Iceland is also promoting gender equality by encouraging
fathers to share the childcare burden with mothers.
In 2000, it introduced what is known as a Daddy Quota.
Three months Statutory Paternity Leave.
It's an allowance that goes much further than
most other countries in the world.
Here, over 70 percent of fathers
take up the full 3 months leave.
Why?
Because the state covers 80 percent of his salary
during this period, up to a cap of $4,600 a month.
One beneficiary of this generous system
is Igor Bianason, who's looking after his son Vala.
Igor believes the high cost of the Daddy Quota
to tax payers is justified because
it helps get more women in to work.
But even in Iceland,
men are still paid nearly 6 percent more
than women for similar work.
This year, Iceland became the first country in the world
to pass legislation, not just to expose,
but to tackle the gender pay gap.
Companies with over 25 employees, like Reykjavik Energy,
now have to prove they are paying men and women
equally for similar jobs.
Every job at the company must be measured
against a set of criteria.
This produces a score.
For jobs with the same score,
workers must be paid the same.
When Reykjavik Energy used this pay calculator,
the inequalities came into sharp and immediate focus.
We noticed that there was a pay gap there between the
unskilled workers that were outside and
the unskilled workers inside.
The outside unskilled workers are mainly men and
the unskilled workers inside,
that's the cleaning staff, the staff in the kitchen,
that's mostly women.
What's important to keep in mind is the gender pay gap.
It's not there because there's a couple of evil men
making decisions to pay women less.
It's this unconscious bias that we all have.
We place more value on traditionally male dominated jobs.
The company rectified this by
raising the wages of it's female employees.
Critics of the law point out there will be significant
financial consequences for companies
as they rectify their pay inequalities.
But many argue this is a necessary price to pay.
It's a human rights issue, isn't it?
Paying the same wage for equally valuable jobs.
Having a law that requires companies to have this,
it makes everyone accountable.
Gender equality will be an ever more pressing challenge
for wealthy countries across the world.
Could the ambitious measures being tested in Iceland
provide practical solutions?