On October 24th, 2023 thousands of women across Iceland went on strike in protest of inequal pay and gender-based violence.

The protest saw the first full-day women’s strike in Iceland since 1975, when 90% of Icelandic women striked to protest gender inequality. Icelandic women and non-binary people were called upon to refuse both paid and unpaid work for the day, including household chores.

History of gender inequality protests in Iceland

In 1975, the first full-day strike for gender equality took place in Iceland. Called Women’s Day Off, the strike served to call attention to just how much women do for the country, both in the workforce and at home. Since 1975, there have been a handful of other strikes in protest of gender inequality. However, the first one to last the entire day since the Women’s Day Off took place on October 24th.

Do you call this equality?

The event’s slogan was “Do you call this equality?” and it was meant to highlight that while Iceland consistently ranks as one of the top countries for gender inequality, there is still a long way to go. Women in Iceland are overwhelmingly represented in some of the lowest-paying jobs in the country, namely cleaning and childcare. The organisers of the strike particularly wanted to point out the discrimination faced by immigrant women, who often work long hours in these jobs at a lower wage. 

According to Statistics Iceland, the majority of people that hold positions of power are men.

Icelandic Prime Minister joins the strike

The prime minister of Iceland, Katrín Jakobsdóttir, joined the strike on October 24th. She did not attend to any of her official duties. The prime minister has been working diligently on issues of gender equality since elected. In 2018, her government implemented the equal pay certification policy, the first country to have an equal-pay certificate policy in both private and public firms.

The impact of the strike

The impact of the strike on Iceland’s workforce was severe. Some schools in the country were not open at all on October 24th. Medical clinics in the capital were only treating emergencies. National airlines were required to cancel flights. Public transit across the country experienced delays. The strike serves as a reminder of the many ways in which women contribute to society, both through unpaid labour in the home and labour in the workforce that is subject to the wage gap.