The majority of Member States have registered setbacks in terms of gender equality in health and education and reveal that “women across the EU earn only 77% of what men earn annually”
Women in the European Union need to work a year and three months to earn the same as men earn in a year, the European Institute for Gender Equality reported this Tuesday, in its most recent report.
The European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) publishes the Gender Equality Index annually and the 2025 report states that “despite progress across Europe, full gender equality is still at least 50 years away”.
According to EIGE, the majority of Member States have registered setbacks in terms of gender equality in health and education and reveals that “women across the EU earn only 77% of what men earn annually”.
“This means that they have to work, on average, 15 months and 18 days to bring home the same amount as men in a year”, guarantees the organization, according to which this is a “shocking salary disparity between men and women”.
The Index data gives an overall score of 63.4 points out of 100 to the European Union, but highlights that progress is uneven, varying between the lowest score of 47.6 points for Cyprus and the highest for Sweden, with 73.7 points. Portugal achieves the same overall score as the EU average.
“Although this represents an increase of 10.5 points since 2010, at the current and renewed pace, it means that we are still half a century away from achieving full gender equality”, highlights the EIGE, highlighting that this means that “women are working the equivalent of an entire ‘ghost quarter’ for free”.
Quoted in the EIGE statement, the institute’s director, Carlien Scheele, highlights that this loss of income is unfair and is “an obstacle to equality and competitiveness throughout Europe”.
She points out that these three months are time that women do not spend with their families, studying, training or resting and that “this worsens their pensions and income throughout their lives”.
The Gender Equality Index tracks countries’ progress in six areas: work, money, knowledge, time, power and health, giving ratings on a scale of 0 to 100, in addition to monitoring violence against women and intersectional inequalities.
In terms of work, the Index reveals that female employment is growing, but few women reach management positions or positions with higher salaries, and that motherhood restricts career prospects, unlike men.
Regarding money, the main finding is that women earn 77% less than men’s annual income, which represents an increase compared to 69% in 2015, and that women who live as a couple earn, on average, 30% less than their partners.
In terms of the Time area, EIGE says that women continue to assume the majority of unpaid care and domestic tasks, limiting their involvement in leisure and public life.
On the other hand, in terms of Knowledge, it states that “young women perform better than men in higher education, but are directed to caring professions, such as education, health or social work, which are typically undervalued”.
The Power measure “has been the main driver of progress in the Index since 2020”, but “remains the domain with the lowest score (40.5) due to persistent inequalities”.
Health is the area with the highest score (86.2), but the EIGE points out that “progress has stagnated and inequalities persist with regard to health behaviors and the number of years of healthy life, especially for women with a low level of education”.
“The Index also finds that violence against women remains widespread and underreported, with data pointing to an alarming 31% of women who suffer physical and/or sexual violence in their adult lives — with greater exposure among women under the age of 45,” the report reads.
The director of EIGE admits progress, “but very slowly”, and pointed to the lack of women in top, better paid positions, or in management positions, defending “care systems that are not limited to freeing up women’s time, but that share the burden equitably with their partners”.
