HÀ NỘI — Public policies and especially enterprise polices are crucial to support gender equality in the workplace, experts said at the forum ‘Promoting Gender Equality in the Digital Age and Integration’ held in Hà Nội by the Ministry of Labour-Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) on Wednesday.

According to the figures in a study by International Labour Organisation (ILO) presented at the forum, female workers are 2.4 times more susceptible to unemployment risks than their male counterparts. Females also receive salaries 12 per cent lower than males.

Risks can be defined as being replaced by machines and automation, said Đào Quang Vinh, Director of the Institute of Labour Science and Social Affairs.

Nguyễn Thị Hà, Deputy Minister of MOLISA explained the reason for this is female workers’ low expertise, lack of managing skills, limited access to knowledge and social prejudice against women.

Delegates at the forum agreed that to fight gender inequality in the workplace and unemployment risks, enterprises need to invest in workers’ job training, as well as supporting female workers.

The study by ILO which focuses on five sectors including automotive and auto parts; electrical and electronics; textiles, clothing and footwear; business outsourcing and retail shows that in the next ten years, 70 per cent of wage workers are at high risk of unemployment, 18 per cent at medium risk and 12 per cent at low risk.

Despite the challenges, there are positive figures to consider. Việt Nam was the quickest country to bridge gender inequality in the past 20 years. According to UNDP’s Human Development Reports 2016, Việt Nam’s Gender Inequality Index places 71 out of 188 countries and Gender Development Index comes in the first out of five groups.

Besides, 70 per cent of females are in the workforce, 31.6 per cent of which are business owners.

Experts in the forum note that Industry 4.0 will have a radical effect, and this could be a chance for females to earn employment, which help to promote gender equality.

Industry 4.0 will bring chances for female entrepreneurs, giving them more opportunities to access technology and social justice, stated Doctor Dương Kim Anh, Deputy Manager of Việt Nam’s Women Academy. — VNS