July 17, 2024 opinion

The ‘pink tax’ – another hidden weapon in the oppression of women

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Camilla Savelieva in Kent, United Kingdom

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January 8, 2024, Uniprix in Quebec, Canada. Gender-based price difference between Byly deodorants for women (50 mL) vs men (75 mL). Both are sold for $5,99.

Picture by: Wikipedia

The so-called ‘pink tax’ may not be an actual tax, but it is an audacious and harmful way for businesses to make profit at the expense of women through misogynistic marketing schemes.

Through methods such as gender colour-coding (blue is for boys, pink is for girls), companies have found a way to create a distinction between products for women and products for men, which has paved the way for the pink tax.

According to the World Economic Forum, the pink tax is when products targeted at women are more expensive than those targeted at men, when such items (for example, deodorant, shampoo, razors) are essentially the same. This is a global phenomenon that has existed since at least the 1990s.

The ‘tampon tax’, an actual government tax which classifies menstrual hygiene products as ‘luxury items’, is not the same as the pink tax but still is an anti-woman measure. However, it has been repealed in countries such as the UK, Kenya, Mexico and more.

A UK analysis from 2018 found that women’s facial moisturiser is on average over 34% more expensive than men’s. In the US, women pay thousands more for the same goods and services. In 2020, Californian women paid about $2,381 more than men for the same goods and services per year – adding up to about $188,000 in pink tax throughout a woman’s life, according to California Senate committees.

Read more:

The Pink Tax That’s Costing Women Billions of Dollars a Year—and What We Can Do About It

According to American feminist publication Ms Magazine, some of the worst offenders of gender-based price discrimination include India, Indonesia, Australia and Japan. For example, in many countries clothing for women is taxed 0.7% more than identical items for men.

These higher costs may seem small but they are passed through the retail chain, finally resulting in a very high tariff for the female consumer.

Although the United Nations has called on countries to abolish the pink tax, many legislators have been slow to act with the ‘Pink Tax Repeal Act’ failing to get through the US Congress in 2016. Some states in the US (California, New York, Florida) have passed legislation against the pink tax, with California prohibiting gender-discriminatory pricing, a law that is meant to save women $47bn annually in the state alone.

But considering how recent many investigations into the pink tax have been, governments around the world have significant work left to do to abolish discriminatory pricing.

One reason they have been reluctant to act is its ultimate benefit to businesses worldwide. Though significantly disadvantaging women consumers, there is one sector that the pink tax does benefit: businesses.

According to financial media outlet Investopedia, the profits from the pink tax (since it is not an actual government-imposed tax) go directly into the pockets of the businesses that set the pricing. This solidifies the pink tax as a predatory, profit-maximising technique that preys on women, who continue to earn less than men, in both developed and developing nations.

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Gender-based price difference.

Picture by: TheeErin | Flickr

The pink tax is yet another weapon that big business uses in its endless quest for profit, via the commodification of female identity.

In order to maximise earnings under capitalism, corporations must, and do, exploit existing societal inequalities imposing social burdens on women, that do not exist or exist on a much smaller scale, for their male counterparts.

For example, thanks to clever marketing by the shaving industry in the early 20th century, women became pressured into buying their products, resulting in massive profits. Similar strategies were adopted everywhere in the beauty industry.

Through manufacturing and twisting the narrative of women’s gender expression for its own gain, modern business has armed itself with a centuries-old tool of oppression – the patriarchy. Supported by commerce’s creation of the ever-changing, unattainable standard of female beauty and femininity, the patriarchy continues to push onto women the mantra that their only worth in society lies in their attractiveness.

Corporations exploit this by creating an intricate illusion of choice for women, telling them they can liberate themselves via rampant consumerism, encouraging women to buy products that make them feel good about their bodies.

Corporations can advertise lucrative products to solve problems that their own marketing created, while leaving women poorer, dissatisfied and exploited. Measures such as the pink tax burden women even further in an economic system that profits from their objectification and exploitation.

In order to keep current oppressive economic systems working efficiently to reap profits for conglomerates, significant resources are dedicated to keep women subordinated, both socially and economically.

How can we rise above this? To tackle the economic oppression of women, we can regulate corporations and pass legislation that outlaws predatory measures such as the pink tax and imposes strict penalties on perpetrators.

As with any deep-seated and societally entrenched inequalities, there is no simple solution. But by recognising and working to tackle measures such as the pink tax and exploitative marketing, little by little we can make the world a better place to be a woman.

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Camilla Savelieva

Economics editor

United Kingdom

Camilla was born in 2007 in London. She joined Harbingers’ Magazine in 2023 as one of the winners of the first edition of the Harbinger Prize. In 2024, she became the Economics editor for the magazine.

She is interested in politics, history, and economics and enjoys writing about these subjects. Camilla speaks English, Russian, French, and Spanish. In her free time, she enjoys debating, reading and singing.

Edited by:

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Maria Mitko

Women’s Desk editor

Warsaw, Poland

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