The pink tax and other invisible taxes Singapore women ‘pay’: What you didn’t know about gender inequality
Painkillers, shavers, dry-cleaning, healthcare premiums and more. Women pay extra for all these, while earning less than men generally. CNA Women uncovers what the pink tax and other unseen costs are and their impact on us.
Women are victims of pink tax or gender price discrimination – they pay a premium on products and services marketed at them whereas men are charged less. (Photo: iStock/mapodile)
Have you heard the old “men” joke? Menstrual cramps. Mental stress. Menopause. All our problems begin with men. Hold the laughs because while the jokes are about men, it’s us women that literally pay for it the most.
There’s even a term for it: Pink tax – the premium on products and services we’re paying as women, or gender price discrimination.
Yes, women pay so much more just to be… a woman. Got your period and have menstrual cramps? For pain relief, you’ll find Panadol Menstrual in the supermarkets and pharmacies. That’s S$9.60 versus their normal painkillers at S$7.60.
Have unwanted hair? Try shaving with Gillette’s Venus range with a variety of razors for different body parts that come with automatic scented lotion dispensers. It’s S$15.85 versus their men’s razors at S$14.05. If you use disposable razors, the price difference is three times more.
Have items that need dry-cleaning? Blouses cost more to clean, even if they are shorter than a man’s shirt. I won’t even get started on the difference between what it costs to clean dresses versus men’s suits – a one-piece compared to shirt, jacket and pants can come up to 30 per cent more.
WHAT IS PINK TAX?
Pink tax refers to premiums or markups that women pay on certain products that are designed for and marketed towards them. For a similar product or service, men are paying less.
We see it in personal care basics like menstrual products, painkillers and razors and other hygiene items, including shampoo, deodorant and even face moisturiser. According to this report by the World Economic Forum, the price disparity can be anywhere from 7 per cent to 35 per cent more than what men pay across categories.
In the United States, feminine hygiene products like sanitary pads and tampons are taxed because they are deemed non-essential. Currently, 21 states in the US charge a sales tax on sanitary products.
Closer to home, an Australian advocacy group found that Australian women pay over 50 per cent for birth control like oral contraceptives (AUD$304 or S$274) while men pay AUD$197 for condoms.
This gender-based pricing phenomenon affects many aspects of women’s lives.
WHY IS THERE EVEN A PINK TAX?
Why pink and not any other colour? It’s likely because pink has long been associated with girls and women – it’s ingrained in societal and cultural perceptions of what is gender appropriate. Even in adulthood, the preference for pink is more prevalent in women.
Some companies use this association to create products or services that capitalise on it, for example, a pink razor. Aesthetics aside, there is no real reason for this additional cost.
“Most economists will say prices are a function of supply and demand. The interesting issue with ‘pink tax’ is that the perception is it’s largely about raising prices to take advantage of demand,” said Walter Theseira, Associate Professor of Economics at the Singapore University of Social Sciences.
“(It’s) not because the costs of making the product are different or higher when catering for women. In short, women are willing to pay more, and companies take advantage of that.”
Manufacturers tend to highlight a key ingredient which makes the product more suitable for women. With Panadol, its Menstrual range includes 25mg of pamabrom – a weak diuretic that relieves the symptoms of pre-menstrual symptoms like bloating and swelling.
However, the painkiller ingredients for menstrual cramps are the same dosage as its regular Panadol, which also helps reduce fever and body aches.
I asked my friend, David Tan*, who has worked in the consumer goods industry, why this might be the case. He said: “Without any real research into each product, I believe a lot of this higher pricing is due to marketing. There are certain active ingredients which cater to the women’s needs better but not at such a significant amount that requires such increases.”
SINGAPORE’S OTHER “PINK TAX”
There aren’t taxes on sanitary pads or tampons in Singapore but women pay higher prices for certain essentials, such as personal care products, services and even healthcare.
When CareShield Life was first introduced, there was outrage among women. This disability insurance scheme looks after one’s long-term care needs if you have disabilities that render you immobile.
Men and women pay different premiums. Men pay S$206 while women pay S$253 each year and these premiums increase by 2 per cent annually till you turn 67. Singaporeans start paying premiums from the age of 30, so multiply that S$47 difference by decades with a compounded interest and you’ll understand the uproar.
The reason for the discrepancy is that men and woman have different expected lifespans. According to Singapore’s Department of Statistics, women outlive men by about 4.5 years.
So the care needed for women in those latter years requires them to “pay it forward”.
There were passionate arguments over the fact that as women live better and longer lives, we are “punished” with higher premiums because it will cost more to look after us as we age.
Assoc Prof Theseira said although women pay more for the same scheme, this isn’t quite pink tax. “Unlike higher prices set by commercial companies to benefit from gender-based marketing, the higher CareShield Life premium for women is set by regulators, as this is clearly a supply and cost issue,” he said.
“The truth is: It is more costly to cover women if their expected lifespan and corresponding healthcare costs are higher.”
CAREGIVING: A FORM OF INVISIBLE TAXES THAT WOMEN INCUR
Women carry an invisible burden of caregiving due to societal or cultural expectations. MOM’s Labour Force Survey indicates that pay disparity in Singapore often starts when women are in their 30s, when they typically start to have children.
A report by Deloitte showed that 88 per cent of women work full-time but half of them are primarily responsible for domestic duties, including caring for their dependents.
There is also a societal expectation that when ailing parents or young children need care, it is the woman who should take an employment break to do so. This is also the case with trailing spouses, who tend to be women.
When these women return to the workforce, they may face lower wages or fewer opportunities than their peers, although recruiters CNA Women spoke with said this may not always be the case.
Joan Liew, Senior Consultant for Asia, Prospect Resourcing, a recruiter specialising in public relations and communications, said: “It’s about whether the candidate has the relevant knowledge, skills or experience. If a woman has been upskilling, working in a part-time or freelance capacity, she builds a strong case for her relevance to the role and there should be no reason why she is not remunerated accordingly.”
May Sng, Director at Frontier Executive Search, added: “It really depends on how long they have been out of the workforce. It’s not all doom and gloom: Women who took that short sabbatical and still managed to keep in touch with industry news, trends or new developments, may find it easier to get a role with a competitive salary package.”
THE COSTS OF TAKING ON MORE DURING THE PANDEMIC
During COVID-19, women took on a lot more in the home. If they were working full-time, they had to also contend with childcare, home-based learning and household duties – simply because they were working from home.
A Singapore study done in November 2020 showed that women performed more unpaid domestic work and provided care than the men thought they did. This is on top of women already incurring pink tax on female-related products they buy, and the gender pay gap.
The latest statistics from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) show that the gender pay gap between men and women in Singapore is 4.3 per cent, down from 8.8 per cent in 2002.
MOM found that the unadjusted pay gap is 14.4 per cent. Meaning, for every S$100 earned by a man, a woman earns only S$85.60. When this figure is adjusted, taking into account controls that MOM calls “human capital and labour market factors” such as race, ethnicity, education level and years of experience, this figure falls to 4.3 per cent.
According to Corinna Lim, executive director at Singapore’s Association of Women for Action and Research, aside from the pink tax and other cost-of-living issues, gender inequality manifests economically via this pay gap.
She said: “It’s important to remember that the gender pay gap is not only about ‘different pay scales for the same job’. The arguably more significant statistic is Singapore’s unadjusted gender pay gap, which stands at 14.4 per cent as of the latest data.
“Considering that women already struggle to earn what men earn in Singapore, the pink tax feels even more egregious – an unfair penalty, on top of another unfair penalty.”
HOW CAN WE LESSEN THE BURDEN OF PINK TAX?
There is no real solution to pink tax and the other invisible taxes women pay. Even as we are attracted to pretty pastel packaging and “feminine” features, the real question is: Do we really need these extras?
Once there is less demand, there will be fewer opportunistic marketers to prey on women.
Other ways include:
- Buying gender-neutral products
- Reading the fine print and making comparisons
- Switching brands and supporting companies who take a stand against pink tax and have fair pricing
AWARE has a list of action plans to take on gender parity in Singapore by narrowing the pay gap, which you can check out.
On the other invisible burdens which women carry, there are no simple answers either. Prioritising mental health and self-care helps women avoid burnout. Speak out, speak up and advocate for one another.
*Name has been changed
CNA Women is a section on CNA Lifestyle that seeks to inform, empower and inspire the modern woman. If you have women-related news, issues and ideas to share with us, email CNAWomen [at] mediacorp.com.sg.
