Archive:SDG 5 - Gender equality (statistical annex)

Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls (statistical annex)

Data extracted in August 2018. Most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Main tables. Planned article update: September 2019.

This article provides an overview of statistical data on SDG 5 ‘Gender equality’ in the European Union (EU). It is based on the set of EU SDG indicators for monitoring of progress towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in an EU context.

This article is part of a set of statistical articles, which are based on the Eurostat publication ’Sustainable development in the European Union — Monitoring report - 2018 edition’. This report is the second edition of Eurostat’s series of monitoring reports on sustainable development, which provide a quantitative assessment of progress of the EU towards the SDGs in an EU context.

Physical and sexual violence to women experienced within 12 months prior to the interview

Figure 1: Physical and sexual violence to women experienced within 12 months prior to the interview, EU-28, 2012 (% of women)
Source: European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) (sdg_05_10)

Figure 2: Physical and sexual violence to women experienced within 12 months prior to the interview, by country, 2012 (% of women)
Source: European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) (sdg_05_10)

This indicator is based on results from a survey by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA). Women were asked whether they had experienced physical and/or sexual violence in the 12 months prior to the interview.

In 2012, 8 % of women in the EU had experienced physical and/or sexual violence by a partner or a non-partner in the 12 months prior to the interview. Looking at longer life spans, every third woman (33 %) in the EU reported having experienced physical or sexual violence by a partner or a non-partner since the age of 15 .

Gender pay gap in unadjusted form

Figure 3: Gender pay gap in unadjusted form, EU-27 and EU-28, 2008–2016 (% of average gross hourly earnings of men)
Source: Eurostat (sdg_05_20)

Figure 4: Gender pay gap in unadjusted form, by country, 2011 and 2016 (% of average gross hourly earnings of men)
Source: Eurostat (sdg_05_20)

The gender pay gap in unadjusted form represents the difference between average gross hourly earnings of male paid employees and of female paid employees as a percentage of average gross hourly earnings of male paid employees. The indicator has been defined as unadjusted because it gives an overall picture of gender inequalities in terms of pay, and measures a concept which is broader than the concept of equal pay for equal work. The gender pay gap is based on the methodology of the structure of earnings survey (SES), which is carried out every four years.

In 2016, women's gross hourly earnings were on average 16.2 % below those of men in the EU. Between 2011 and 2016, the gender pay gap decreased by 0.7 % per year on average.

Gender employment gap

Figure 5: Gender employment gap, EU-28, 2001–2017 (percentage points, persons aged 20–64)
Source: Eurostat (sdg_05_30)

Figure 6: Gender employment gap, by country, 2012 and 2017 (percentage points, persons aged 20–64)
Source: Eurostat (sdg_05_30)

The gender employment gap is defined as the difference between the employment rates of men and women aged 20 to 64. The employment rate is calculated by dividing the number of people aged 20 to 64 in employment by the total population of the same age group. The indicator is based on the EU Labour Force Survey (EU-LFS).

As Figure 5 shows, the gender employment gap in the EU has been steadily decreasing since 2001. It decreased by an average of 2.7 % per year between 2002 and 2017, and by a slightly slower pace of 1.2 % per year in the short-term period since 2012.






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Inactive population due to care responsibilities

Figure 7: Inactive population due to caring responsibilities, by sex, EU-28, 2006–2017 (% of inactive population aged 20 to 64)
Source: Eurostat (sdg_05_40)

Figure 8: Inactive population due to caring responsibilities, by sex, by country, 2017 (% of inactive population aged 20 to 64)
Source: Eurostat (sdg_05_40)

The economically inactive population comprises individuals that are not working, not actively seeking work and not available to work even if they found a job. Therefore, they are neither employed nor unemployed and considered to be outside the labour force. This definition used in the EU Labour Force Survey (EU-LFS) is based on the guidelines of the International Labour Organization.

The share of men out of the labour force due to caring responsibilities steadily increased between 2006 and 2017. However, as the share of inactive women due to caring responsibilities increased even more over the same period, the gender gap widened on average by 1.0 % per year between 2006 and 2017 and by 1.7 % per year in the short-term period.

Seats held by women in national parliaments

Figure 9: Seats held by women in national parliaments, EU-28, 2003–2018 (% of seats)
Source: European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) (sdg_05_50)

Figure 10: Seats held by women in national parliaments, by country, 2013 and 2018 (% of seats)
Source: European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) (sdg_05_50)

This indicator refers to the proportion of women in national parliaments in both chambers (lower house and upper house, where relevant). The data stem from the Gender Statistics Database of the European Institute for Gender Equality.

Women held 29.7 % of seats in national parliaments in the EU in 2018. The share has increased by 2.5 % per year between 2003 and 2018 and slightly slower, at a rate of 2.2 %, over the short time period.

Positions held by women in senior management

Figure 11: Positions held by women in senior management, EU-28, 2003–2017 (% of positions)
Source: European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) (sdg_05_60)

Figure 12: Positions held by women in senior management, by country, 2012 and 2017 (% of positions)
Source: European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) (sdg_05_60)

This indicator measures the share of female board members in the largest publicly listed companies. The data presented in this section stem from the Gender Statistics Database of the European Institute for Gender Equality.

The share of women on the boards of the largest listed companies was 25.3 % in 2017. In the years between 2003 and 2017, there was an increase of 8.1 % per year. In the short term, the increase was even stronger, with 9.9 % per year on average.

See also

• All articles on sustainable development

Further Eurostat information

Database

• Sustainable Development Indicators, see:

Socioeconomic Development

Dedicated section

• Europe 2020 indicators
• Sustainable Development Indicators

Methodology

More detailed information on EU SDG indicators for monitoring of progress towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), such as indicator relevance, definitions, methodological notes, background and potential linkages, can be found in the introduction of the publication ’Sustainable development in the European Union — Monitoring report - 2018 edition’.