The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), has announced equal match fees for both men and women cricket players in India.
- BCCI Secretary Jay Shah announced the landmark decision in a tweet. He said the move was BCCI’s “first step towards tackling discrimination.”
- Earlier this year, New Zealand Cricket (NZC) had struck a deal with the country’s players’ association, which enabled the women cricketers to earn as much as the mail players.
- The BCCI women cricketers will be paid the same match fee as their male counterparts.
- As per new rules, the payment for Tests will be 15 lakh rupees, 6 lakh rupees for ODIs, and 3 lakh rupees for T-20.
- The Indian women’s team recently won the Asia Cup in Bangladesh, beating Sri Lanka in the final at Sylhet by 8 wickets.
- Indian Women’s team also won India’s first-ever medal in cricket at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham earlier this year. The Harmanpreet Kaur-led side lost to Australia in the final and got silver.
International Equal Pay Day
- International Equal Pay Day is celebrated on 18 September.
- According to the ILO, globally, women on average, are paid about 20 per cent less than men.
- While individual characteristics such as education, working time, occupational segregation, skills, or experience explain part of the gender pay gap, a large part is due to discrimination based on one’s gender or sex.
- In addition, women have been among the worst affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, including in terms of their income security, representation in sectors hardest hit, and gendered division of family responsibilities.
- All of these have led to a negative impact on women’s employment, threatening to reverse decades of progress made towards gender equality.
- Taking action to address these setbacks on gender equality as countries emerge from the pandemic is not only relevant and timely but also critical for an inclusive, sustainable, and resilient recovery.
