US Pay Gap Widens as UN Vote Exposes Global Rift on Women's Rights

The gender pay gap in the United States has widened for the second consecutive year, with women now earning 81 cents for every dollar men earn, down from 83 cents in 2024. At the same time, a historic vote at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women revealed deep geopolitical divisions over how to advance gender equality. Romania passed landmark femicide legislation, and the European Commission launched a new five-year gender equality strategy.

These developments, all within the past week, illustrate a global landscape where progress on women's rights moves forward in some regions while stalling or reversing in others.

Equal Pay Day Arrives Later Than Last Year

Equal Pay Day fell on March 26 this year, one day later than in 2025. The date marks how far into the new year women must work to match what men earned the previous year. According to U.S. Census Bureau data, it is the first consecutive widening of the wage gap since the 1960s.

Men's median income grew by 3.7 percent between 2023 and 2024. Women's median income remained flat. The data predates the current Trump administration, reflecting conditions under President Biden.

A new AP-NORC poll published alongside Equal Pay Day found sharp divergence in how men and women perceive the gap. About six in ten employed women said men have more opportunities for competitive wages. Among employed men, roughly four in ten agreed, while half said both genders have equal opportunities. Three in ten employed women reported personally experiencing wage discrimination.

Deborah Vagins, director of Equal Pay Today, said the country is "reversing decades of hard won progress." Advocates continue to push for federal pay transparency laws requiring employers to disclose salary ranges, though such legislation has repeatedly stalled in Congress. A number of states have adopted their own pay transparency rules, with mixed results.

UN Commission Breaks Eight Decades of Consensus

The 70th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women concluded in late March with an unprecedented event: a recorded vote. For the first time in the body's eight-decade history, the Agreed Conclusions were not adopted by consensus but by a vote of 37 to one.

The United States cast the sole opposing vote, objecting to language on abortion and gender-related terminology. The document calls on governments to review and repeal laws that discriminate against women and girls, including those governing family relations, property rights, and financial credit, as well as laws that permit child marriage and female genital mutilation.

The Conclusions also address online gender-based violence, including nonconsensual intimate images and deepfakes that disproportionately target women. They urge governments to strengthen accountability mechanisms and ensure survivors have access to equitable remedies.

The Council on Foreign Relations noted that no country has yet achieved full legal equality between women and men, according to a UN secretary-general's report presented during the session. During panel discussions, speakers from Kenya, Iceland, and other nations emphasized that legal frameworks alone do not guarantee equal rights without enforcement infrastructure.

Romania Passes Femicide Law

Romania's parliament on March 25 adopted a law that for the first time defines femicide in the country's legal code. The bill passed with 284 votes in favor, one against, and two abstentions.

Femicide is now classified as aggravated murder, carrying sentences of 15 to 25 years or life imprisonment. The law requires authorities to collect nationwide data on femicide and related violence. Children of femicide victims will be formally recognised as direct victims and granted immediate assistance.

The legislation follows a sharp rise in domestic violence killings. In 2025, 53 women in Romania were killed by current or former partners. Justice Ministry data show at least 14 women are assaulted every hour. Police responded to more than 130,000 domestic violence cases last year, nearly five percent more than in 2024.

FILIA, a Romanian feminist organisation that pushed for the law, called it "an important day" and said women "will now have more protection mechanisms." The law awaits promulgation by President Nicusor Dan.

In North Macedonia, protests on International Women's Day highlighted similar concerns. The march in Skopje began with a minute of silence for Ivana and Katja Jovanovski, a mother and daughter killed after prolonged domestic violence.

EU Launches New Gender Equality Strategy

The European Commission presented its Gender Equality Strategy for 2026-2030 in early March. The strategy addresses cyberviolence, AI-related risks to women, and ongoing workplace inequality.

According to the European Institute for Gender Equality, at the current pace of change it would take 50 years for the EU to reach full gender equality. The new strategy builds on legislation adopted under the previous 2020-2025 plan, including directives on combating violence against women, pay transparency, and gender balance on corporate boards.

The European Institute for Gender Equality also released a toolkit on March 26 providing EU-wide guidelines for gender-neutral job evaluation and classification, aimed at helping organisations implement the pay transparency directive.

Regional Perspectives

The week's developments reveal contrasting approaches. The EU is expanding its regulatory framework with binding legislation on pay transparency and violence prevention. Romania is adding criminal law tools. The United States, by contrast, is scaling back federal enforcement mechanisms and opposing international consensus documents.

In the Global South, the CSW70 discussions highlighted how legal reforms often outpace enforcement capacity. Kenya's delegation pointed to mobile courts in rural areas as a practical response. Iceland's national police commissioner noted that even countries ranked highest in gender equality indices face persistent gaps between law and lived experience.