Barometer | 28 September 2017

Lost in the post

Postcard maker J. Salmon is to close after almost 140 years, because holidaymakers now send phone selfies rather than cards.
— What is believed to be the very first postcard was a selfie of sorts. It was a caricature of postal workers that practical joker Theodore Hook sent to himself in Fulham using a penny black stamp in 1840, the year the penny post was introduced.
— It was another 30 years before postcards were officially accepted by the Royal Mail, and the now standard design of a picture on the front, address and message on the back was established only in 1902.
— Mr Hook’s card was sold at auction in 2002 for £31,750.

Pay walls

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Which countries have the largest pay gaps between men and women, in a survey of 33 countries? The figures below give female earnings as a percentage of male. (Only in three countries, Egypt, Nigeria and UAE, are women paid more than men overall.)

OVERALL
Mexico	-31
Brazil	-30
UK	-29
Netherlands	-25
Egypt	+34
Nigeria	+7.3
UAE	+0.7
Romania	-9.3

SAME JOB AND EMPLOYER	-1.6
Mexico	-2.9
Brazil	-1.6
UK	-0.8
Netherlands	-1.0
Egypt	+0.1
Nigeria	+0.4
UAE	+2.1
Romania	-1.9

Source: Korn Ferry Hay Group

Steering group

Transport for London refused to renew Uber’s licence to operate cabs. In a survey of 20 American cities, Uber drivers were:

Male	86%
Aged 18-29	19%
30-39	30%
40-49	26%
50+	24%
Have degrees	48%
White	37%
Black	18%
Hispanic	16%
Asian	15%
Married	50%
Parents	46%

Source: Uber

Wordless protest

Some players in America’s National Football League are refusing to stand for their national anthem in a racism protest and in defiance of President Donald Trump. But would they even know the words? Percentage of citizens who know the first verse of their national anthems:

Australia	71%
(figure for second verse, 2014 poll by Jack Daniel’s)
UK	68%
(YouGov 2014)
Switzerland	56%
(DemoSCOPE 2011)
USA	39%
(ABC 2004)