Wage gap in Austria: Women work 44 days for free!

Wage gap in Austria: Women work 44 days for free!

Oberösterreich, Österreich - On February 9, 2025, the “Business and Professional Women Austria” network announced that the Equal Pay Day for Austria has moved to a new appointment. The wage gap between men and women is currently 12.2 percent, which represents a decline compared to the previous year (2024: 12.4 percent). This day symbolizes the period that women work "free" from the beginning of the year in order to reflect on the difference in average income. However, the Chamber of Labor in Upper Austria emphasizes that women work free of charge for 44 days by the end of the year if the calculations are taken to the value of 16.3 percent for the gender pay gap.

background of the wage gap

The causes of the wage gap are complex and are analyzed by experts like Fink. On the one hand, women are less often represented in management positions and are more common in industries with a lower payment. In addition, work interruptions, often through child rearing or maintaining relatives, contribute to wage difference. Women tend to work part -time more often, which affects their chances of career progress. An interesting aspect, about the destatis.de , is that the statistical basis of the calculations only affects full-time people, which includes the data situation.

A diverse discussion about childcare arose, with Fink stimulating the expansion of these institutions and improved models when receiving childcare allowance. He advocates a variety of measures to reconcile family and work. The proposed model of a stove bonus, which is particularly supported by the FPÖ, could, paradoxically, lead to women with lower incomes out of working life and thus reduce the wage gap. However, this would not be a desirable solution, as this could reduce freedom of choice.