Women earn just half of what men earn over 15 Years by Institute for Women’s Policy Research, agencies USA   Nov. 2018   The pay inequality between men and women is much worse than women earning 80 cents for every dollar men earn, according to a new study.   The pay gap is actually more like 49 cents for every dollar, according to a study published Thursday by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, which analyzed total earnings across 15-year increments, such as from 2001 to 2015, instead of just one year, like the census data where the previous figure originated. The gap is much wider because the most recent study’s data set includes anyone who worked even just one year out of the 15 included. And because women are much more likely to have gaps in their time in the labor force, they’re more likely to make less money once they return to the labor force, the study said.   About 43 percent of women workers experienced at least one year with no earnings — almost double the rate of male workers. The researchers said that paid family and medical leave as well as affordable childcare could be policy initiatives that could further encourage women to participate in the labor force with more frequency. The study analyzed 15-year increments over a near 50-year period.   “The good news is that over the course of the nearly 50 years covered in the study, women have seen considerable progress in the labor force, by entering the workforce at higher rates and staying in the labor force for longer periods of time, which have led to higher earnings and a narrower wage gap,” said Stephen J. Rose, the report’s co-author and a nonresident fellow in the Income and Benefits Policy Center at the Urban Institute and a Research Professor at the George Washington Institute of Public Policy, in a statement.   The data also does not include metrics on race, a IWPR spokeswoman told VICE News, though she said that the authors of the study are working to expand the study with breakdowns of race and ethnicity. Statistics show that black and Latina women face the largest pay gaps with white men, and white women outearn most minority groups, including men of color. Visit the related web page
	Women human rights defenders must be protected by UN human rights experts   States must live up to their commitments to protect women human rights defenders, who are increasingly under attack and inadequately protected, a group of UN human rights experts said. They issued the following joint statement to mark International Women Human Rights Defenders Day on 29 November:   “The current global context of unchecked authoritarianism as well as the rise of populism, of corporate power and of fundamentalist groups are contributing towards closing the space for civil society. This is being done through the enactment of laws and practices that effectively impede human rights work, including the misapplication of certain laws such as counter-terrorism and public assembly laws. In this context, women human rights defenders face additional barriers of economic and structural discrimination and unique challenges driven by deep-rooted discrimination against women and stereotypes entrenched in patriarchal societies related to gender and sexuality.   In addition to the risks of threats, attacks and violence faced by all human rights defenders, women human rights defenders are exposed to specific risks such as sexual violence, defamation, intimidation, including against their family members, in order to deter them from continuing their valuable work. In 2017, Front Line Defenders recorded the killings of 44 women human rights defenders, an increase from 40 in 2016 and 30 in 2015.   Those working on rights contested by fundamentalist groups such as women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights and those denouncing the actions of extractive industries and businesses that often leads to the violation of the rights of specific groups, i.e. indigenous people, racial and ethnic minorities, and rural and other marginalised communities, become at heightened risk of attacks and violence.   Women human rights defenders also face particular threats in conflict and post-conflict situations. Situations of armed conflict, and the subsequent break down of the rule of law, create a dangerous environment for women and girls. Women human rights defenders are pivotal in promoting sustainable peace, yet they are constantly excluded from peace processes and politics, often criminalised, and they experience gender-based violence, which hampers their participation in decision-making processes.   Women human rights defenders often face abuses perpetrated by non-State actors including members of their own family, community and faith-based groups, non-State armed groups, private security agencies, corporations, organised crime.   Women human rights defenders make essential contributions to the effective promotion, protection and realization of international human rights law and play an important role in raising awareness and mobilizing civil society in identifying human rights violations and in contributing to the development of genuine solutions that incorporate a gender perspective.   Women human rights defenders lead movements that have swept the globe calling for gender equality and an end to gender-based violence against women. They have flooded the streets, the airwaves, and the internet with their energy and their testimonials, bringing to light truths that are too often buried in darkness.   They are making immeasurable contributions to the advancement of human rights all over the world. They are raising their voices, frequently at great personal risk, to stand up for human rights and justice for all.   Often these women are at the forefront of challenging social and cultural norms that limit women’s human rights. They take stands that are necessary to progress but unpopular, taking on the most powerful and providing support for the most vulnerable.   As United Nations human rights experts, we condemn all attacks on women human rights defenders. We are particularly concerned regarding those who have suffered reprisals for their efforts to work with the United Nations and regional bodies. Participation in the work of the international human rights system is in itself a right and must never be met with intimidation or attacks.”   On this day of celebration of the crucial work of women human rights defenders, we call on States to fulfil their commitment to enable that work, proclaimed almost 20 years ago in the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders and reaffirmed five years ago in General Assembly resolution 68/181 on protecting women human rights defenders.   In order to put an end to all attacks on women human rights defenders, we call for: public recognition, by the highest State authorities, of the importance and legitimacy of the work of women human rights defenders, and a commitment that no violence or threats against them will be tolerated; repeal of any State legislation or elimination of any measures intended to penalize or obstruct the work of defenders; strengthening of State institutions responsible for safeguarding the work of defenders; investigating and punishing any form of violence or threat against defenders, including in relation to reprisals for engaging with the United Nations System, and; due diligence of States in protecting women human rights defenders that are threatened by non-state actors.   But most of all, we express our gratitude and admiration for the actions of these women, for their courage, strength, dedication, effectiveness and relentless fight for human rights.” http://bit.ly/2E5lc4h   Nov. 2018   Amnesty International launches worlds biggest human rights campaign   Women human rights defenders around the world are facing unprecedented levels of abuse, intimidation and violence, said Amnesty International as it launched its global Write for Rights campaign, in a bid to shine a spotlight on brave women who have been harassed, jailed, tortured or even killed for their human rights work:   http://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/11/amnesty-international-launches-worlds-biggest-human-rights-campaign/ Visit the related web page
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