Women in Wales decades away from equality - Chwarae Teg

Chwarae Teg calls the "marginal change" since its first State of the Nation report "extremely disappointing"

Women in Wales remain decades away from achieving equality, says a charity.

Gender equality group Chwarae Teg has also produced a five-year review which paints a picture of little or no progress in improving pay, rights to work and safety in society.

Despite a slight pay increase for women since the original 2019 report, it says Wales' gender pay gap remains 11.3%. 

The charity will host a series of debates this week to examine how "all women can achieve and prosper".

The report says that women are still less likely to be in work than men, and more women are excluded from the labour market due to the pressures of caring for family members.

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Natasha Davies of Chwarae Teg - which is Welsh for "fair play" - said: "If our current pace is maintained, women in Wales are going to have to wait decades for true equality.

"For women from an ethnic minority, who are disabled or on low incomes, the wait will be even longer."

There are fewer women Members of the Senedd than there were in 2019, although there are more female MPs and councillors

The report points to some positive steps over the past five years, particularly with more women MPs and councillors elected, but the representation in politics is still well below 50%.

"In the Senedd," said Ms Davies, "we have gone backwards with fewer women MSs (Members of the Senedd) than we saw in 2019."

The charity's main concern is that the dangers faced by women, not just of violence but also of financial hardship, remain disproportionately high.

'Greater risk of poverty'

"Shamefully, there has been no clear decrease in women's level of risk," it says.

"Women continue to face greater risk of poverty, social exclusion and financial hardship.

"We continue to make little progress in tackling violence against women, domestic abuse and sexual violence with specialist support services facing even greater demand."

Chwarae Teg says the dangers to women of violence and financial difficulty are disproportionately high

Ms Davies said: "We first produced State of the Nation in 2019 to provide a benchmark to track how well Wales was progressing towards becoming a more gender equal nation."

"Considering five years have now passed, to see such marginal change is extremely disappointing. In many areas we have not moved at all and in others we have backtracked.

"A more equal Wales will benefit everyone. It will contribute to a more prosperous Wales, a more resilient Wales and a healthier Wales. No-one would underestimate the scale of the challenge in tackling inequality, but warm words must turn into action, and with increased urgency."

Jane Hutt, the Welsh government equality minister, is due to take part in Chwarae Teg's first State of The Nation debate on Monday.

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