Women will ride Berlin’s metro, buses and trams at a 21 per cent discount on 18th March to call attention to Germany’s gender pay gap.
On average, women earn 21% less than men in Germany. To reflect on this gender pay gap, the city’s public transport operator, BVG, will be launching the world’s first women’s ticket, “Frauenticket”, for one day on 18 March 2019, Equal Pay Day.
“You have to speak out when people are treated differently for no reason,” said the BVG. “This is a small gesture of solidarity, though it is nothing in comparison with what women are deprived of in income every year.”
Germany’s gender pay gap is the second highest in Europe. A woman in Germany has to work 442 days to earn as much as a man earns in 365, the BVG said.
While the move by BVG has been applauded on social media, few men have been irked by it. Addressing the same the BVG said that apologises to the men who feel discriminated against but said, “On the other hand, who apologises to the women who earn on average 21% less?”
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