Labor market? Gender gap in the country, high difference between the employment of the two sexes

In 2022, the employment gender gap in Albania is calculated at 12.4 percentage points. According to the data of the 'European Statistics Agency', this indicator ranks us among the first countries in Europe. Meanwhile, in the EU, the employment gender gap is calculated at 7.9 percentage points.

How is this indicator measured?

The gender employment gap is defined as the difference between the employment rates of men and women aged 15 to 64.

The employment rate among women in Albania, for the year 2022, is calculated at 58.9%, while the European Union average is 66.8%. Albania ranks fifth from the bottom in Europe in terms of employment rate, while Serbia, Romania, Greece and Italy rank as the countries with the lowest rate in Europe. On the other hand, Iceland, the Netherlands and Switzerland are the countries with the highest employment rate among women, respectively with 81.2%, 78.1% and 75.4%.

As for the male employment rate, once again Albania ranks among the last countries with 71.4% and below the European Union average, which is estimated at 74.7% for 2022. What is noticeable from the data analysis is the fact that in in all European countries, the employment rate for men is higher than for women. Albania, with a gap of 12.4 percentage points, ranks sixth in Europe among the countries with the deepest gap. Meanwhile, Greece and Italy lead Europe with an employment gap of 19.1 points and 18.1 percentage points.

But which are the European countries that have the lowest gap? According to the data of the 'European Statistics Agency', Lithuania and Finland are the countries with the lowest gap, respectively with 0.8 points and 0.3 percentage points.

A number of reasons have caused gender inequality in employment over the years, such as discrimination in employment and low participation of women in decision-making or factors such as child care or unpaid work.