Yahoo Finance New Ms. Monopoly game highlights gender pay gap
Hasbro has released a new Monopoly game aimed at celebrating female entrepreneurs while highlighting gender inequality.
The game, Ms. Monopoly, features a new character, Ms. Monopoly who is a women’s advocate on a mission to boost female entrepreneurs, the toy company said this week.
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Additionally, female players get more money at the start of the game and when passing go in this version of Monopoly, the listing on Walmart reveals.
According to USA Today, that difference is an extra $400 on top of the $1,500 starting money, and $240 for passing go, compared to male players’ $200.
“Ms. Monopoly is also the first-ever game where women make more than men – a fun spin in the game that creates a world where women have an advantage often enjoyed by men. However, if men play their cards right, they can make more money too,” Hasbro said.
And instead of investing in real estate, players invest in famous inventions made by women, like WiFi, which was invented by Hedy Lamarr in the 1940s.
“Ms. Monopoly gives new meaning to the franchise, as properties are replaced by groundbreaking inventions and innovations made possible by women throughout history,” Hasbro said.
“From inventions like WiFi to chocolate chip cookies, solar heating and space station batteries, Ms. Monopoly celebrates everything from scientific advancements to everyday accessories – all invented by women. Ms. Monopoly was created to inspire everyone, young and old as it spotlights women who have challenged the status quo.”
Gender pay gap in Australia
According to the government’s Workplace Gender Equality Agency, women earn 14 per cent less than men across the workforce as a whole. That means that the average woman working full-time will earn $1,484.80 a week, while the average Australian man will earn $1,726.30 a week.
Today is [Un] #EqualPayDay! The 14% #GenderPayGap means that women must work an extra 59 days to earn the same as men. Tweet us why #TheGapMatters to you!
— WGEA (@WGEAgency) August 27, 2019
To celebrate the launch, Hasbro also gave three young female inventors seed funding of US$20,580 – the same amount of money involved in every game of Monopoly.
And in the US, women earn 81 per cent of what their male counterparts make, while that gap is even larger for black and hispanic women.
Celebrating female entrepreneurs
Sophia Wang, 16, has invented a device that can detect sinkholes before they occur, while Gitanjali Rao, 13, has created an invention that helps detect lead in drinking water.
Ava Canney, 16, has made a spectrometer that measures the amount of dye in lollies and soft drink and hopes to help people learn about the harmful effects of additives in food.
“Through the introduction of Ms. Monopoly and the money these young women have received to invest in their future projects, we want to recognize and celebrate the many contributions women have made to our society and continue to make on a daily basis,” said Hasbro senior director, global brand strategy and marketing Jen Boswinkel.
The game will be available internationally from September 2019 with a recommended retail price of US$19.99.
The Yahoo Finance’s All Markets Summit will take place on the 26th September 2019 at the Shangri-La Hotel, Sydney. Check out the full line-up of speakers and agenda here.
