Only one manager out of three in the EU is a woman

The proportion of women in managerial occupations in Malta in 2014 stood at 30%

Eurostat figures show that in women represent 35% of those in managerial positions in enterprises with 10 employees or more located within the EU
Eurostat figures show that in women represent 35% of those in managerial positions in enterprises with 10 employees or more located within the EU

Despite representing approximately half of all employed persons in the European Union, women continue to be under-represented in managerial positions, according to Eurostat.

Eurostat figures show that in women represent 35% of those in managerial positions in enterprises with 10 employees or more located within the EU, in comparison to men, who make up 65% of all managers.

In addition, the figures also show that those women in managerial positions in the EU earn 23.4% less on average than men, meaning that female managers earn on average 77 cents for every euro a male manager makes per hour.

Latvia boasts the highest number of female managers in the EU

The largest share of women among managerial positions is recorded in Latvia, which is the only EU member state where women are a majority in this occupation, totalling 53%.

Latvia is followed by Bulgaria and Poland, which both have 44% of managerial positions being filled by women. In Ireland, the figure is 43%, followed by Estonia with 42%, Lithuania, Hungary and Romania all with 41%, as well as France and Sweden both with 40%.

At the opposite end of the scale, women account for less than a quarter of managers in Germany, Italy and Cyprus, with 22% of managers being women, followed by Belgium and Austria with both countries reaching 23%, and Luxembourg where 24% of managers are women.

Lowest gender pay gap for managers in Romania, largest in Hungary and Italy

The gender pay gap in managerial positions is the narrowest in Romania where the difference was 5%, ahead of Slovenia, Belgium and Bulgaria where the discrepancy in pay stand at 12.4%, 13.6% and 15% respectively.

In contrast, a female manager earns about a third less than her male counterpart in Hungary  Italy and the Czech Republic, where the gender pay gap stands at 33.7%, 33.5%, 29.7% respectively.

Furthermore, female managers earn about a quarter less in Slovakia (28.3%), Poland (27.7%), Austria (26.9%), Germany (26.8%), Portugal (25.9%), Estonia (25.6%) and the United Kingdom (25.1%).

Malta registers below the EU average

In the case of Malta, the country registers below the EU average for both the number of females in managerial positions and in the discrepancies in the pay between men and women in managerial positions.

In Malta, 30% of all those holding managerial positions are women. The gender pay gap stood at 21.5%.

This data has been collected by the Eurostat office from the four-yearly structure of earnings survey for reference year 2014.