EU gender equality report 2005 shows advances, but inequality remains

Brussels 14/02/2005. The 2005 gender equality report, which is available today, shows that while gender employment and education gaps are closing in the EU, the gender pay gap has remained almost unchanged. The report, compiled by the European Commission, provides an annual insight into gender equality in the EU.

It highlights that reconciling work and family life remains a problem for many women. Women with children have lower employment rates than those without. The majority of domestic work in the home is still carried out by women. A lack of affordable childcare remains an obstacle to equality.

Women’s lower participation in the labour market means that their pension entitlements are significantly lower than men’s. And gaps between older men and women are more acute, with elderly women more at risk of poverty than men.

Increased integration of women into the workforce will release the productive potential of the EU and increase social cohesion, in line with the Lisbon strategy. EU legislation has already advanced equal treatment, in particular through its new Directive on equal treatment of men and women in the provision of goods and services.

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Source: European Commission