Women in the Town of Princeton earn less than half of their male counterparts, despite carrying bachelor degrees, according to currated data looking at gender pay inequality in the province.
The data, based off the 2017 Statistics Canada census, shows that Princeton women, employed full-time and year round, make nearly half, or .44 – of the salaries earned by men.
Ten per cent of women in Princeton have a bachelor’s degree, compared to 9.1 per cent of men.
Women here also earn considerably less than the comparable average for their gender across the country. Canada-wide the gender pay gap is .80, data shows.
Within the region, Princeton women also do not compare favorably. The gender pay gap is .77 in Summerland, .76 in Keremeos, .81 in Penticton and .91 in the Okanagan-Similkamneen.
Pay inequality has been brought to the forefront around the world in recent years, pointing to a number of root causes that put women behind in the workplace, including childcare.
Gary Schatz, Princeton’s economic development coordinator, was not available to comment on the data, however the dramatic pay gap here could be linked to the town’s largest employers in the trades sector.
Statistics Canada reports that women make up just 18 per cent of employment in the mining and forestry fields.
In celebration of International Women’s Day, the province announced two new programs Thursday morning to entice girls at a young age to get involved in STEM – science, technology, engineering and mathematics.