The coronavirus pandemic and ensuing economic and political turmoil have sharpened the challenges facing women as they demand equal rights, three of the world’s most influential female leaders warned Monday.
US Vice President Kamala Harris, New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and EU chief Ursula von der Leyen addressed the European Parliament on International Women’s Day.
“Simply put, our world does not yet work for women as it should,” Harris, the first woman and the first American of African and Asian descent to serve as US vice-president, told MEPs.
“COVID-19 has threatened the health, the economic security, and the physical security of women everywhere,” she warned in a video address recorded in Washington.
Von der Leyen, the first woman to head the EU executive, touted her plans to insist on transparency and in hiring and salaries to incite European companies to close the gender pay gap. The women in Europe are paid 14 percent less than men and only 67 percent are in paid work, compared to 78 percent of men. “This is simply not acceptable,” she said.
“At the same time, women comprise 70 percent of the global health workforce, putting them on the front lines and at risk of contracting the virus,” Harris said.
