Women, Business and the Law 2020 Report (the “Report”)is the sixth in a series of studies conducted by the staff of the World Bank. The Report’s indicators are constructed based on feedback from 2,000 respondents with expertise in family, labor and criminal law, including lawyers, judges, academics, and members of civil society organizations working on gender issues.
It analyzes laws and regulations affecting women’s economic opportunity in 190 countries, the Philippines included. The Report (with data as recent as September 1, 2019), assessed the economies with eight indicators that describe women’s interactions with the law as they begin, progress through and end their careers. The indicators were chosen based on statistically significant associations with outcomes related to women’s empowerment, including women’s labor force participation rates. The Report (in Table 1.1), lists down the following indicators:
Table 1.1 What does the women, business and the law index measure?
• Mobility
1. Can a woman choose where to live in the same way as a man?
2. Can a woman travel outside her home in the same way as a man?
3. Can a woman apply for a passport in the same way as a man?
4. Can a woman travel outside the country in the same way as a man?
• Workplace
1. Can a woman get a job in the same way as a man?
2. Does the law prohibit discrimination in employment based on gender?
3. Is there legislation on sexual harassment in employment?
4. Are there criminal penalties or civil remedies for sexual harassment in employment?
• Pay
1. Does the law mandate equal remuneration for work of equal value?
2. Can women work the same night hours as men?
3. Can women work in jobs deemed dangerous in the same way as men?
4. Are women able to work in the same industries as men?
• Marriage
1. Is there no legal provision that requires a married woman to obey her husband?
2. Can a woman be head of household in the same way as a man?
3. Is there legislation specifically addressing domestic violence?
4. Can a woman obtain a judgment of divorce in the same way as a man?
5. Does a woman have the same rights to remarry as a man?
• Parenthood
1. Is paid leave of at least 14 weeks available to mothers?
2. Does the government administer 100 percent of maternity leave benefits?
3. Is paid leave available to fathers?
4. Is there paid parental leave?
5. Is dismissal of pregnant workers prohibited?
• Entrepreneurship
1. Does the law prohibit discrimination in access to credit based on gender?
2. Can a woman sign a contract in the same way as a man?
3. Can a woman register a business in the same way as a man?
4. Can a woman open a bank account in the same way as a man?
• Assets
1. Do men and women have equal ownership rights to immovable property?
2. Do sons and daughters have equal rights to inherit assets from their parents?
3. Do female and male surviving spouses have equal rights to inherit assets?
4. Does the law grant spouses equal administrative authority over assets during marriage?
5. Does the law provide for the valuation of nonmonetary contributions?
• Pension
1. Are the ages at which men and women can retire with full pension benefits equal?
2. Are the ages at which men and women can retire with partial pension benefits equal?
3. Are the mandatory retirement ages for men and women equal?
4. Are periods of absence due to child care accounted for in pension benefits?
Eight economies rated a perfect score of 100 points, meaning that women are on an equal legal standing with men across all the above eight indicators. These countries are mostly European: Belgium, Denmark, France, Iceland, Latvia, Luxembourg and Sweden. The exception was Canada. The Philippines barely improved in terms of advancing women’s emancipation with a rating of 81.25 points in 2019, compared to 81.3 points in the 2020 report. The average global score in 2019 is 75.2 points, compared to 73.9 points as measured in 2017.
The Parenthood Indicator has been the most popular area of reform, with 16 economies, including the Philippines, enacting positive changes. The Philippines’s score in parenthood jumped to 80 points from 60 points previously, due to the recent passage of a law that extended the duration of paid maternity leave from 60 days to 105 days.
The Philippines rated 100 points in the indicators of workplace, pay, entrepreneurship; 75 points each in mobility and pension; but scored a low 60 points in marriage and assets.
David R. Malpass, president of the World Bank Group, in his “Foreword” to the Report notes that although social mores are improving and many countries have improved the regulatory environment for women over the last two years, much work remains. As he aptly sums up: “We shouldn’t be satisfied until every young girl can move through her life without facing legal barriers to her success!”
Attribution: World Bank: 2020. Women, Business and the Law 2020. Women, Business and the Law. Washington, D.C.: World Bank. doi: 10.1596/978-1-4648-1532-4. License: Creative Commons Attribution CC BY 3.0 IGO