Gender Pay Gap: Who is left behind? Facts and solutions!

Gender Pay Gap: Who is left behind? Facts and solutions!

Kleine Zeitung, Österreich - The gender Pay GAP remains an urgent topic in Austria. A current report by the WIFO shows that the uninanced wage gap between women and men has dropped by 5.7 percentage points since 2011, to 18.3 percent. This means that women earn 18.3 percent less per hour than their male colleagues. In the private sector, the difference between the average gross hourly earnings of men and women, such as destatis.de reported. This is an alarming number, which, however, does not reflect the whole truth about the reasons of paying wage.

education and career choice in focus

An important factor that reinforces the wage gap is the different choice of career between the sexes. In 2022, 22.7 percent of women had a university degree, compared to 18.1 percent of men. In 2023, women with a university degree earned 24.8 percent more than those with compulsory school leaving certificate, while men with a university degree earned 25.3 percent more. Despite these differences, wages in industries with predominantly female employment are often lower. Women work in professions such as retail clerk or hairdresser, while men choose technical and better remunerated professions, which further consolidates the salary differences.

According to the WIFO, the adjusted gender pay gap, which takes into account structural differences such as career choice and industry, is estimated at 6.3 percent. This number has hardly changed since 2012 and shows that a difference in earnings remains even after these factors are taken into account. Nevertheless, it should be emphasized that the adjusted gender pay gap is not synonymous with discrimination, but rather serves as an upper limit for potential discrimination by employers, such as