Eesti in brief - 2012-07-12

Estonia’s first lady Mrs Evelin Ilves will run in the London Olympics torch relay run on July 18, reports Ohtuleht Online. “Her running distance is nearly 300 meters,” said President’s Chancellery spokeswoman Piret Pert. While no information about Mrs. Ilves’ run is posted in the Olympics homepage, it is revealed that the other two Estonian torch carriers, Renna Jarvalt and Jaanus Kala, will run in Ssandgate and Folkstone also on July 18. Evelin Ilves will fly to the UK on July 17 and return on July 19. The costs connected with her trip and run are covered by the Estonia Olympic Committee.

The government approved on July 5 an action plan submitted by Social Minister Hanno Pevkur that proposes a set of measures to reduce the wage gap between men and women, reports Postimees Online. The list includes compiling different analyses, organizing training, but also initiating a mentorship program for female managers. According to the Statistical Office data, the average gross hourly wage of men in October last year was 22.9 percent higher than that of women. A study that was commissioned by the Social Ministry did not pinpoint any factors that could be considered the main cause of the wage gap. Social Minister Pevkur said that besides training and information work, reduction of gender-based segregation is very important, adding that if social attitudes regarding this could be changed a bit, it would certainly reduce the wage gap.

As of end of June, a total of 41,102 persons were registered as unemployed in Estonia, reports Aripaev Online. This is 6.3 percent of the labor force from age 16 to pension age. In June, the Unemployment Insurance Fund registered 5,269 newly unemployed persons. During the same month, 3,427 persons found employment with the help of the fund or started their own businesses. The majority of newly registered unemployed who had been working prior to that were skilled laborers and craftsmen (19 percent), unqualified laborers (18 percent) and service and sales staff (17 percent).