Women’s workshops for making woolen textiles have been found in Iceland. Textiles were used as a form of currency in medieval Iceland, and there were regulations as to what was legal tender in the oldest (11th-century) part of the Grágás laws. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Fortunately, according to Aas, Icelandic women are finding ways to resist limited ideas of beauty in their everyday lives, starting with the example they’re setting. “Many of us choose to be inspired by women who respect their bodies and have a happy balance with family, work, spirituality, and health,” she says.
The country’s first women’s rights organization formed in 1894 http://taormina.dk/single-philippine-women/ and collected signatures on voting rights petitions. By 1907, 11,000 women and men—more than 12 percent of the population—had signed on. In 1915, women over 40 were granted the right to vote, and in 1920, the country introduced suffrage for all citizens ages 18 and up. The idea for the “strike” was formed during the first Women’s Congress in Iceland in June earlier that year where the five largest women’s organizations in Iceland gathered in Reykjavik to discuss common issues. Women were being paid 60 percent less for the same work that men were paid, and were not being recognized for the contributions they made as homemakers. The Red Stockings, a feminist organization formed in 1970, suggested that women go on strike. Iceland is a particularly interesting place to study women’s history.
- She became minister of social affairs in 1987, a position she held until 1994.
- Herring girls’ organizing efforts took place around the same time that women won suffrage in Iceland.
- It identifies differences between indirect and direct gender discrimination, acknowledges gaps in wages, and recognizes that gender-based violence is detrimental to society.
- You might have heard of a two-time CrossFit Games champions Annie Thorisdóttir and Katrin Davidsdottir.
- In 1845 the vote was limited to men above a certain age who owned property and paid taxes.
- Nevertheless, women still earn about 14% less than men, though these statistics do not take into account the hours worked, over-time, and choices of employment.
It also has the world’s first female and openly gay head of government, Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir, who was elected prime minister in 2009. Today, observers often cite Iceland as a model of gender parity for other nations to follow. The historical arc of those achievements leads back to a period of rapid change in the country—to the salting stations of Siglufjörður and towns like it, and to the hard work of the herring girls. Herring towns grew rapidly as salting stations, processing plants and warehouses sprung up along the ever-expanding docks. Home to some 1,200 residents today, Siglufjörður reached a population of more than 3,000 by the 1940s.
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A Better World Is Possible: The 1975 Icelandic Women’s Strike
Before I jump into speaking about each woman, I will first give a bit of history about Iceland regarding suffrage and the significant impact that Icelandic https://thegirlcanwrite.net/hot-icelandic-women/ women’s organizations had in the country. These organizations were formed before women had the right to vote. After going over each of the phenomenal women’s backgrounds, I share a little timeline of significant moments in Icelandic history that are related to women rights and equal rights. In response to the strike, the first Gender Equality Act, banning discrimination based on gender, was adopted in 1976. The event has also been credited with paving the way for the election of Iceland’s first female president, Vidgís Finnbogadóttir, who in 1980 became the first woman in the world to be democratically elected as a head of state.
Gendered Narratives in Historical Accounts
And, you know, this is also an ongoing issue that we need to be tackling and need to be dealing with. But hopefully, we’re moving forward with that a little bit more. So it’ll be really interesting to follow what happens in that case. Iceland’s first women’s organization was founded in the countryside in 1869. It’s focus was to foster more unity and cooperation among women in the region. They also collected money to buy a knitting machine that all members could use. You might have heard of some of the women I’m featuring but there are others that you have probably never learned about.
The strike was orchestrated to raise awareness of the important contributions of women in Icelandic society, and additionally, it spurred people to action . The women’s absence from the workplace and from the home for the day was a very effective method to bring awareness to all that women did . The following year, a law banning wage discrimination based upon gender was passed . Five years after the strike, Iceland’s first female president, Vigdis Finnbogadottir, was elected; in 1983, the Women’s Alliance, a new political party, won seats in the parliamentary election .
Parliament is expected to pass the bill becoming the first country to make gender wage discrimination illegal. After passing, the government expects the law to roll into effect by 2020 in an effort to close the gender wage gap. The striking women achieved their goal of demonstrating the importance of their work, at all levels from home to workplace, to the well being of the country. While this was their main goal, and it even led to the passage of an equal rights bill, this bill did little to change the wage disparity and employment opportunities for women in the short run. That changed in 1903 but still that means that more than 50 years went by where only men with certain status in society had the right to vote.
Then, in 1907, the Icelandic Women’s Rights Association began as the first formal women’s organization to focus on political gender equality and “equal access to education” and the workplace. In 1908, Iceland elected four females to serve on the city council in Reykjavik. As of 2018, 88% of working-age women were employed, 65% of students attending university were female, and 41% of members of parliament were women. Nevertheless, women still earn about 14% less than men, though these statistics do not take into account the hours worked, over-time, and choices of employment. Iceland has the world’s highest proportion of women in the labour market, https://www.salari.nl/65-best-irish-women-ideas-irish-women-irish-women/ significant child care allocations for working women. It has gender neutral parental leave, with a quota for each parent, and a transferable part.
Those women who worked outside of the home in Iceland made less than 60 percent of the wages that men https://razzo.in/2023/01/21/7-secrets-to-making-friends-with-dutch-women/ made. Women were also often unable to get jobs because they did most, if not all, of the housework and child rearing. The goal of the strike was to protest the wage discrepancy and unfair employment practices by demonstrating the crucial roles of women in Icelandic society. Of course, this work of refocusing our historical awareness and filling in the archival gaps is not unique to Iceland.
Thanks to mandatory quotas, almost half of board members of listed companies are now women, while 65% of Iceland’s university students and 41% of MPs are female. Because the pay is significant – 80% of salary up to a ceiling of £2,300 a month – and because it’s on a use-it-or-lose-it basis, 90% of Icelandic fathers take up their paternal leave. This piece of social engineering has had a profound impact on men as well as women. Not only do women return to work after giving birth faster than before, they return to their pre-childbirth working hours faster, too.
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