Paris city government appoints too many women, fined by the ministry of public affairs.On Tuesday, in an unprecedented move, the city of Paris was fined $109,000 (90,000 Euros) by the ministry of public service of the national government. The reason for this levy was the fact that Anne Hidalgo, the city’s female mayor has appointed too many women in senior posts at city hall.
More than two thirds of the mayor’s 2018 appointments were women with 11 women and five men holding senior staff roles. These appointments are technically against the French public sector employment law passed in 2013. It stipulates that each gender have at least 40 percent representation in government positions.
Hidalgo said, “I am happy to announce we have been fined. The management of city hall has, all of a sudden, become far too feminist.”
Last year’s update in the law allows new hires to exceed the 60-40 gender balance as long as it doesn’t lead to an overall gender imbalance beyond this threshold in the government workforce.
Le Monde reports that in the city of Paris, women in city hall’s senior positions are 47 percent and they are paid 6 percent less than their male colleagues.
“Yes, we must promote women with determination and vigor, because the delay everywhere in France is still very great. So yes, to promote and achieve parity, we must speed up the tempo and ensure that in the nominations there are more women than men.” Hidalgo told the city council.
France’s public service minister Amelie de Montchalin said that the penalty was absurd and the fine paid by Paris would be used to promote women in the public service.
