The career portal Career Junction shows that there is a gender gap in many positions, including managerial positions.
The group’s recent Employment Insights Report analyzed how pay and positions differ across major industries as a result of a person’s gender identity.
The report used data collected from Saongroup South Africa, a platform where top recruiters in South Africa post job openings to millions of registered job seekers.
One of the report‘s most striking findings is that gender inequalities dominate roles at the top of the wage distribution.
CareerJunction found that across all industries, men account for more than half of all mid-level and senior management positions, but women make up less than a third.
There has also been no improvement in this measure over the past five years as the gender gap for leadership positions has stagnated.
“In terms of executive management/director positions, the gap is even wider, with men accounting for 61% of these jobs and women accounting for only 30%,” said CareerJunction.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a statement on International Women’s Day that the economic gap between men and women is still huge and about half of all women in the country are unemployed.
The graph below shows the gender distribution in executive directors: (Note: the gray graph refers to information that has not been provided).
Role domination
CareerJunction said the most female-dominated roles in South Africa are in beauty, childcare, reception and secretarial work – so-called “pink collar” jobs:
However, in terms of male-dominated roles, the occupations related to demolition, truck driver, tool making, installation and repair of household appliances, and tax driving are most dominated by men:
Gender-balanced roles, despite being hard to come by, exist, with the most gender-balanced profession being commercial lawyers. CareerJunction said professions such as business analysis, trade brokerage, risk management, and sales representative/advice are also some of the most balanced roles:
Pay gap
Salaries in some of the most popular industries, including finance manager positions, software developer positions, accountant positions, operations manager positions and sales consultant positions, vary significantly between genders.
CareerJunction looked at the pay gap in the context of men and women in the same positions, with the same level of work experience, within the same industries and working in the same location (Gauteng).
CareerJunction gave the following breakdown in terms of positions filled:
Financial manager position
10 years manufacturing experience, Gauteng Male: R60,000 – R110,000 (+22% more) Female: R50,000 – R90,000
Function of software developer
10 years experience in IT industry, Gauteng Male: R45,000 – R65,000 (+26% more) Female: R35,000 – R55,000
Accountant roles
10 years experience in the financial sector, Gauteng Male: R25,000 – R70,000 (+41% more) Female: R25,000 – R50,000
Sales Consultant Roles
10 years experience in FMCG, retail and wholesale, Gauteng Male: R15,500 – R21,500 (+13% more) Female: R13,500 – R19,500
Operational manager roles
10 years, manufacturing industry, Gauteng Male: R45,000 – R60,000 Female: R45,000 – R60,000
Read: How much it pays to be a CEO at South African state-owned companies
