Latvia: conscription for men, but women volunteers earn twice as much
In Latvia, men serve 11 months of compulsory military service for 300 euros a month, while women who volunteer receive 600. A gap that contradicts the feminist narrative.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Latvia forces men into 11 months of military service and pays them half of what women volunteers earn
Feminists keep warning that women are the discriminated ones, but the figures coming out of Latvia don't add up. The Baltic country has reintroduced compulsory military service for men, lasting 11 months and paying 300 euros a month. Women can enlist voluntarily and, if they do, they receive 600 euros a month. Double the pay for the same work, but without the obligation to serve. A paradox that smells of double standards.
Conscription for them, volunteering for her
The Latvian system prioritises volunteers. To fill an annual quota of 1,500 places, the state first accepts those who sign up voluntarily. If the number isn't reached, a lottery is held among men of military age. In the latest intake, there were 1,500 volunteers, but a third were rejected at the medical examination, forcing a draw for 400 additional places. Women, on the other hand, can only join as volunteers. Of the 1,500 places filled, just 46 went to women who volunteered. The rest, 1,454 men, were a mix of volunteers and conscripts.
The pay: 300 euros for the conscript, 600 for the volunteer
The pay gap is the most controversial point. Conscripts (men) are paid 300 euros a month. Volunteers — both men and women, though mostly men — receive 600 euros. Since women can only enter as volunteers, all of them get the higher pay. Men who are drafted get half. The official logic is to encourage volunteering, but the result is that the state pays double to those who choose to serve compared to those who are forced to, and since women are never forced, the gap is total.
In fact, over the past year the number of volunteers doubled: men have learned that if they sign up voluntarily they get 600 euros, while if they wait for the draft they end up with 300. An economic survival strategy that does nothing to solve the underlying discrimination.
The professional army, another egalitarian mirage
Defenders of the system argue that women have the option of a professional military career, where pay is higher and there is no gap. Indeed, 20% of professional soldiers in Latvia are women. But the fact that women serve as volunteers in compulsory service on 600 euros — when they could go straight for a professional contract — is seen by some analysts as a sign that something doesn't fit with the official equality narrative.
Two days before the debate, the question hangs in the air: how can the state justify forcing you to defend your country and then paying you half of what it pays someone who serves by choice? For now, the official answer is administrative silence.
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Feminists keep warning that women are the discriminated ones, but the figures coming out of Latvia don't add up. The Baltic country has reintroduced compulsory military service for men, lasting 11 months and paying 300 euros a month. Women can enlist voluntarily and, if they do, they receive 600 euros a month. Double the pay for the same work, but without the obligation to serve. A paradox that smells of double standards.
Conscription for them, volunteering for her
The Latvian system prioritises volunteers. To fill an annual quota of 1,500 places, the state first accepts those who sign up voluntarily. If the number isn't reached, a lottery is held among men of military age. In the latest intake, there were 1,500 volunteers, but a third were rejected at the medical examination, forcing a draw for 400 additional places. Women, on the other hand, can only join as volunteers. Of the 1,500 places filled, just 46 went to women who volunteered. The rest, 1,454 men, were a mix of volunteers and conscripts.
The pay: 300 euros for the conscript, 600 for the volunteer
The pay gap is the most controversial point. Conscripts (men) are paid 300 euros a month. Volunteers — both men and women, though mostly men — receive 600 euros. Since women can only enter as volunteers, all of them get the higher pay. Men who are drafted get half. The official logic is to encourage volunteering, but the result is that the state pays double to those who choose to serve compared to those who are forced to, and since women are never forced, the gap is total.
In fact, over the past year the number of volunteers doubled: men have learned that if they sign up voluntarily they get 600 euros, while if they wait for the draft they end up with 300. An economic survival strategy that does nothing to solve the underlying discrimination.
The professional army, another egalitarian mirage
Defenders of the system argue that women have the option of a professional military career, where pay is higher and there is no gap. Indeed, 20% of professional soldiers in Latvia are women. But the fact that women serve as volunteers in compulsory service on 600 euros — when they could go straight for a professional contract — is seen by some analysts as a sign that something doesn't fit with the official equality narrative.
Two days before the debate, the question hangs in the air: how can the state justify forcing you to defend your country and then paying you half of what it pays someone who serves by choice? For now, the official answer is administrative silence.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (18 replies).
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