Gender perspectives - annual update 2000

In this annual update, we examine a number of industrial relations and employment statistics for 1999 and 2000 from a gender-differentiated perspective. We find, for example, that on average across the EU and Norway: women's earnings are around 79% of men's; full-time male workers work longer weekly hours than their female equivalents, while part-time hours are almost the same for men and women; women's employment rate is lower than men's, but their unemployment rate is higher; union density is higher among men than women, who make up a minority of union members; and women are much more likely than men to work part time, while temporary and fixed-term work is shared more equally between women and men.

In industrial relations, as in many other fields, numerous issues are often treated in a gender-neutral way, with an overall picture presented without reference to how the positions of women and men might differ within this general situation. This obscures the fact that in many areas women and men are in a very different situation and have contrasting experiences. The aim of this annual update from the European Industrial Relations Observatory (EIRO), based on contributions from its national centres in the EU Member States (plus Norway), is to provide gender-differentiated statistics on a number of key issues of industrial relations and employment significance. This approach is promoted, within the context of "gender mainstreaming", by the European Commission's 2001-5 Community framework strategy for gender equality (EU0007264F). Furthermore, in several areas where women are known to be in a disadvantageous position (eg average earnings), or to be over-represented (eg part-time work), this update includes figures solely on the position of women (though of course this runs the risk of treating women as a special case outside the "male norm").

The production and dissemination of relevant gender-differentiated statistics by official bodies and social partner organisations is not very well developed in most countries, and this absence of figures means that is not currently possible to approach important areas such as collective bargaining coverage or industrial action in this way. Furthermore, key bargaining outcomes such as pay increases are (with exceptions) generally expressed in a gender-neutral way, and it is not possible to distinguish the positions of women and men on the basis solely of the figures in agreements. Even in the areas which are covered by this update, it will be apparent that there are major gaps in the data. The fact that no gender-differentiated figures are produced by some countries on some issues is in itself an interesting finding of this update.

As with other areas of labour statistics, there are numerous difficulties in making international comparisons on the issues covered here. Comparable data are not collected in all countries, while there may be particular problems in areas such as the definition of average earnings or part-time work. As with all EIRO annual updates, the aim here is to provide a "snapshot", giving some rapid and broad general data on current developments, while pointing out the pitfalls involved in comparisons. For reasons of space, and because our aim is not to provide a statistical guide, we do not provide full definitions of how the figures are arrived at for each country, but merely call attention to the problems. The figures provided should be treated with extreme caution, and the various notes and explanations read with care.

Average earnings

Statistics are available on women's average earnings as a percentage of men's average earnings for all countries apart from Italy (though definitions may differ). Figure 1 below indicates the situation in 1999, the last year for which data is available from most countries. Some 25 years after the adoption of the EU equal pay Directive (75/117/EEC), the wage gap between women and men still averages some 21% across the EU (plus Norway). The gap is widest in Austria, Portugal and Germany, and narrowest in Norway, Luxembourg and Ireland. The Nordic countries generally have a narrower wage gap than average.

The figures in figure 1 should be read in conjunction with the following notes.

Austria: figure from Statistik Austria.
Belgium: figure is for blue-collar workers (71.7% for white-collar workers); figures from Ministry of Labour and Employment.
Denmark: figure from Statistics Denmark; figure refers to hourly earnings.
Finland: figure from Statistics Finland; when adjusted for differences in education, sector and occupational group, women's earnings are calculated as 86.2% of men's.
France: figure from National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques, INSEE).
Germany: figure, from Federal Statistical Office (Statistisches Bundesamt Deutschland), refers to industrial workers only and to the whole of Germany (72.6% for west Germany and 79.8% for east Germany).
Greece: figure from National Statistical Service (ESYE) labour force survey.
Ireland: figure from Central Statistical Office (CSO) refers to average hourly earnings.
Luxembourg: figure from Central Service for Statistics and Economic Studies (Service central de la statistique et des études conomiques, STATEC).
Netherlands: figure from Central Statistical Office (Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek, CBS) Emancipation Monitor (Emanciepatiemonitor) 2000.
Norway: figure, from the Technical Calculation Committee for Income Settlements (Teknisk Beregningsutvalg, TBU), represents average of a few large sectors.
Portugal: figure from Quadros de Pessoal, Ministry of Labour and Solidarity.
Spain: figure from National Institute of Statistics (Instituto Nacional de Estadística, INE) wage survey.
Sweden: figure from Statistics Sweden and National Institute for Working Life (Arbetslivsinstitutet); when adjusted for differences in age, education, working hours, sector and occupational group, women's earnings are calculated as 91% of men's.
UK: figure, from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) New earnings survey, refers to hourly earnings; the figure for weekly earnings is 74.5%.

Working time

The national data on average actual weekly hours worked is often problematic for purposes of comparison, given differing definitions. Notably, many national labour force surveys do not distinguish between full- and part-time workers. However, table 1 below gives the average actual weekly hours for full-timers in the 10 countries where gender-differentiated statistics are available. The figures cover 1999, the latest year for which figures are available for most countries. Belgian and Luxembourg national statistics do distinguish between full- and part-time workers, but not between women and men, so are not included in the table

As the table indicates, across the 10 countries, male full-time workers work an average of 2.4 hours (6.3%) longer a week than their female counterparts. Men work longer full-time weekly hours than women in all cases apart from the Netherlands, where weekly hours are the same for both. The largest differences are found in the UK (5.6 hours, or 16.1% higher) and Sweden (4.4 hours, or 12.4%) and the smallest, apart from the Netherlands, in Greece (1.4 hours, or 3.4%) and France (1.6 hours, or 4.1%).

**Table 1. Average actual weekly working hours, male and female full-time workers, 1999**
Country	All	Women	Men
Austria	40.2	38.8	40.9
Denmark	38.0	36.6	38.9
Finland	41.0	39.3	42.4
France	39.6	38.6	40.2
Greece	42.2	41.3	42.7
Netherlands	38.0	38.0	38.0
Norway	40.1	38.9	40.9
Spain	38.4	37.0	39.2
Sweden	37.9	35.6	40.0
UK	38.5	34.8	40.4
Average	39.4	37.9	40.3

Source: EIRO.

The figures in table 1 should be read in conjunction with the following notes.

Austria: figures from Statistik Austria.
Denmark: figures from the 1999 Eurostat labour force survey.
Finland: figures from Statistics Finland.
France: figures from INSEE labour force survey.
Greece: figure for 1999 is from ESYE labour force survey; figure for 2000 is an Institute of Labour (INE/GSEE-ADEDY) estimate.
Netherlands: estimates (assuming 30 days of leave per year) based on an annual figure from CBS for all full-time workers of 1,709 hours (1,708 for men, 1,710 for women).
Norway: unofficial figures produced by FAFO on basis of Statistics Norway labour force surveys.
Spain: statistics from INE labour force survey.
Sweden: figures from Statistics Sweden.
UK: figures from ONS labour force survey.

For the same countries, apart from Sweden, figures are also available for the average actual weekly working hours of male and female part-time workers (as defined in national statistics) -see table 2 below. The situation is rather different than for full-time hours, with men and women part-timers working almost identical hours on average across the nine countries - indeed women work very slightly longer. However the picture varies notably between countries, with women part-timers working longer weekly hours than men part-timers in Denmark, Finland, Norway and the UK, and shorter weekly hours in Austria, France, Greece, the Netherlands and Spain. The largest differences are found in Denmark, where women part-timers work an average of 7.7 hours (or 53.8%) more a week than their male counterparts, and Austria and the Netherlands, where men part-timers work an average of 3.2 hours (15.2% and 13.7% respectively) more a week than their female counterparts.

**Table 2. Average actual weekly working hours, male and female part-time workers, 1999**
Country	All	Women	Men
Austria	21.5	21.0	24.2
Denmark	20.1	22.0	14.3
Finland	20.4	20.8	19.5
France	22.9	22.9	23.2
Greece	17.3	17.3	17.4
Netherlands	24.1	23.3	26.5
Norway	19.8	20.4	17.9
Spain	17.1	16.8	18.3
UK	15.4	15.4	15.1
Average	19.8	20.0	19.6

Source: EIRO.

The figures in table 2 should be read in conjunction with the following notes.

Austria: figures from Statistik Austria.
Denmark: figures from 1999 Eurostat labour force survey.
Finland: figures from Statistics Finland.
France: overall figure from INSEE labour force survey; gender-differentiated figures from 1999 Eurostat labour force survey.
Greece: figures from ESYE labour force survey.
Netherlands: figures from CBS working population survey.
Norway: unofficial figures produced by FAFO on basis of Statistics Norway labour force surveys.
Spain: statistics from INE labour force survey.
UK: figures from ONS labour force survey.

National labour force statistics in Germany, Ireland and Italy do not distinguish between the average actual weekly hours of part-time and full-time workers. Table 3 gives the average actual weekly hours of all workers in these countries, and of women and men separately. In all three cases, men's average actual weekly hours are considerably longer than those of women - by eight hours or more in Germany and Ireland.

**Table 3. Average actual weekly working hours, all male and female workers, 1999**
Country	All	Women	Men
Germany	36.2	30.1	40.9
Ireland	38.5	33.3	42.5
Italy	35.0	32.0	38.0

Source: EIRO.

The figures in table 3 should be read in conjunction with the following notes.

Germany: figures, from Federal Statistical Office, refer to the whole of Germany; for west Germany, the figures are 35.6 hours for all workers, 28.8 hours for women and 40.6 hours for men; for east Germany, the figures are 39.0 hours for all workers, 35.4 hours for women and 41.9 hours for men.
Ireland: figures from CSO.
Italy: figures, from National Institute of Statistics (Istituto Nazionale di Statistica, Istat), refer to dependent employees.

Employment and unemployment rates

Table 4 below gives the employment rate (defined as the percentage of economically active people in the working age population) for the whole population and for women and men in all 16 countries in 1999 and 2000 (though data for 2000 are missing in many cases). The figures indicate both a major difference between the employment rates for women and men, and great variations between national employment rates for the whole population and for women and men

In 1999 (the year for which data are available for all countries), the average male employment rate across all 16 countries was nearly 20 percentage points (or over a third) higher than that for women. Male employment rates were higher than female rates in all 16 countries, with the largest gaps found in Spain (30.8 percentage points, or 80% higher), Greece (29.8 points), Italy (26.3 points), Luxembourg (25.9), the Netherlands (25.0 points) and Ireland (24.3 points). Female and male employment rates are closest to parity in the Nordic countries - Finland (a gap of 4.9 points, or 7.7%), Sweden (5.3 points), Denmark (8.6 points) and Norway (8.8 points).

Female employment rates vary enormously between countries, with 44.2 percentage points separating the extremes of 29.8% in Italy and 74.0% in Sweden. Notably low rates are also found in Spain, Greece, Austria and France, with higher rates recorded in Denmark, Finland and Norway. Male employment rates also vary considerably, but the difference between the lowest - 55.7% in France - and the highest - 79.3% in Sweden - is only 23.6 percentage points. Notably low rates are also found in Austria and Italy, with higher rates recorded in Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway and Portugal.

**Table 4. Employment rate, women and men, 1999 and 2000**
Country	All		Women		Men
	1999	2000	1999	2000	1999	2000
Austria	48.3	48.5	40.5	nd	56.5	nd
Belgium	59.3	nd	50.4	nd	68.1	nd
Denmark	74.3	74.6	69.5	70.2	78.1	79.0
Finland	66.0	nd	63.5	nd	68.4	nd
France	48.2	49.3	41.3	42.4	55.7	56.7
Germany	64.8	nd	56.9	nd	72.4	nd
Greece	55.0	55.5	40.4	41.5	70.2	70.1
Ireland	60.5	61.0	48.5	49.4	72.8	73.1
Italy	42.4	43.1	29.8	30.6	56.1	56.6
Luxembourg	61.6	nd	48.5	nd	74.4	nd
Netherlands	65.0	nd	51.0	nd	76.0	nd
Norway	71.0	70.9	66.5	66.6	75.3	75.1
Portugal	67.4	nd	59.4	nd	75.8	nd
Spain	53.6	56.1	38.4	41.4	69.2	71.2
Sweden	77.7	77.6	74.0	74.7	79.3	80.4
UK	59.2	nd	51.8	nd	67.0	nd
Average	60.9*	59.6**	51.9*	52.1***	69.7*	70.3***

Source: EIRO. * Average of 16 countries; ** average of nine countries; *** average of eight countries.

The figures in table 4 should be read in conjunction with the following notes.

Austria: figures from Statistik Austria.
Belgium: figures from Statistics Belgium (Institut National de Statistique/Nationaal Instituut voor de Statistiek, INS/NIS) labour force survey.
Denmark: figures from Statistics Denmark; 2000 figures refer to second quarter.
Finland: figures from Statistics Finland.
France: figures from INSEE labour force surveys; definition is proportion of economically active people in working age population.
Germany: figures, from Federal Statistical Office, refer to whole of Germany; for west Germany, the figures are 65.3% for whole population, 56.7% for women and 73.6% for men; for east Germany, the figures are 62.7% for whole population, 57.9% for women and 67.3% for men.
Greece: figure for 1999 is from ESYE; figure for 2000 is an INE/GSEE-ADEDY estimate.
Ireland: figures from CSO.
Italy: figures from Istat.
Luxembourg: figures, from European Commission, refer to domestic employment rate (excluding cross-border workers).
Netherlands: figures from CBS working population survey.
Norway: unofficial figures produced by FAFO on basis of Statistics Norway labour force surveys.
Portugal: figures from European Commission.
Spain: figures from INE labour force survey.
Sweden: figures from Statistics Sweden.
UK: figures from ONS.

Turning to the other side of the employment coin, table 5 gives the unemployment rate for the whole population and for women and men in all 16 countries in 1999 and 2000 (though data for 2000 are missing in many cases). As with employment rates, the figures indicate both a major difference between the unemployment rates for women and men, and great variations between national unemployment rates for the whole population and for women and men

In 1999 (the year for which data are available for all countries), the average female unemployment rate across all 16 countries was 2.6 percentage points higher than that for men. However, this conceals major differences between countries. While female unemployment rates are higher in 12 countries, the male unemployment rate is higher in Norway, Sweden and the UK and the two rates are equal in Ireland. In those countries where the female unemployment rate is higher, the gap is one percentage point or lower in Austria and Finland, but over 10 percentage points in Spain (11.9 points) and Greece (10.3 points). In Greece, the Netherlands and Spain, women's unemployment rates are at least twice those of men, and Italy is nearing this figure.

Female unemployment rates vary enormously between countries, with 19.8 percentage points separating the extremes of 3.0% in Norway and 22.8% in Spain (in other words, Spanish women are over seven times more likely to be unemployed than Norwegian women). Notably low rates are also found in Luxembourg, Portugal, Sweden and the UK with higher rates recorded in Greece, Italy and France. Male unemployment rates also vary considerably, but the difference between the lowest - 1.8% in Luxembourg - and the highest - 10.9% in Spain - is only 9.1 percentage points. Notably low rates are also found in the Netherlands, Norway and Portugal, with higher rates recorded in France and Germany.

**Table 5. Unemployment rate, women and men, 1999 and 2000**
Country	All		Women		Men
	1999	2000	1999	2000	1999	2000
Austria	6.7	5.2	6.9	5.7	6.5	4.9
Belgium	8.6	nd	10.4	nd	7.2	nd
Denmark	5.7	5.4	6.6	4.6	4.9	4.6
Finland	10.2	nd	10.7	nd	9.8	nd
France	11.8	10.0	13.6	11.9	10.2	8.5
Germany	10.5	9.6	11.2	10.0	9.9	9.2
Greece	11.7	12.0	17.8	18.2	7.5	7.7
Ireland	5.1	3.9	5.1	3.8	5.1	3.9
Italy	11.4	10.6	15.7	14.5	8.8	8.1
Luxembourg	2.9	2.6	3.3	nd	1.8	nd
Netherlands	4.1	nd	6.0	nd	3.0	nd
Norway	3.2	3.4	3.0	3.2	3.4	3.6
Portugal	4.1	3.8	4.7	4.8	3.6	2.9
Spain	15.4	14.0	22.8	20.4	10.9	9.6
Sweden	5.2	4.0	4.7	3.7	5.7	4.2
UK	6.2	nd	5.3	nd	6.9	nd
Average	7.7*	7.1**	9.2*	9.2***	6.6*	6.1***

Source: EIRO. * Average of 16 countries; ** average of 12 countries; *** average of 11 countries.

The figures in table 5 should be read in conjunction with the following notes.

Austria: figures from Austrian Institute for Economic Research (Wirtschaftsforschungsinstitut, WIFO) .
Belgium: figures from INS/NIS labour force survey.
Denmark: figures from Statistics Denmark.
Finland: figures from Statistics Finland.
France: figures from INSEE labour force surveys.
Germany: figures, from Federal Statistical Office, refer to whole of Germany; for west Germany, the 2000 figures are 7.8% for whole population, 7.7% for women and 7.7% for men; for east Germany, the 2000 figures are 17.4% for whole population, 18.8% for women and 15.9% for men.
Greece: figure for 1999 is from ESYE; the figure for 2000 is an INE/GSEE-ADEDY estimate.
Ireland: figures from CSO.
Italy: figures from Istat.
Luxembourg: overall figures from STATEC; gender-differentiated figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999.
Netherlands: figures from CBS working population survey.
Portugal: figures from National Statistics Institute (Instituto Nacional de Estatística, INE); 1999 figure refers to fourth quarter, 2000 figure to second quarter.
Spain: figures from INE labour force survey.
Sweden: figures from Statistics Sweden.
UK: figures from ONS.

Trade union membership

Accurate trade union membership figures are notoriously difficult to compile (the matter is a source of heated debate in some countries, such as France) and to compare between countries. Trade union density figures (union members as a proportion of the labour force) are also hard to compare, with problems including that of whether or not to include union members who are retired, unemployed or students in the calculation. However, table 6 gives union density rates for 15 countries (estimates in some countries). Gender-differentiated density figures are even harder to find, with only eight national centres able to report such figures. However, such figures cast useful light on the extent to which unions represent men and women.

Union density rates vary enormously across western Europe around the average of 50.1%, from the 75% plus recorded in many of the Nordic countries to below 10% in France. However, our interest here is mainly in the relationship between the union density rates for men and women. Across the eight countries for which figures are available (which include many of the relatively high union density countries), average union density among men exceeds that among women by 3.9 percentage points (or 8%). Male union density is considerably higher than female density in Austria (by 19.1 points, or around two-thirds), Germany (16.6 points, or around 80%) and the Netherlands (12 points, or around 60%), and less markedly so in the UK (3 points, or 11%). However, in the other four countries, female union density is higher than that for men - by 8.0 percentage points (or 11%) in Finland, 5.0 points (9%) in Norway, 5.0 points (6%) in Sweden and 2.1 points (2.4%) in Denmark. It is in the relatively high-unionisation countries that women's unionisation exceeds men's. The range of union density among women - between 88.6% in Denmark and 20.0% in the Netherlands (68.6 percentage points) - is considerably greater than that among men - between 86.5% in Denmark and 31.0% in the UK (55.5 points).

**Table 6. Trade union density, women and men, 2000**
Country	All	Women	Men
Austria	39.8	29.1	48.2
Belgium	69.2	nd	nd
Denmark	87.5	88.6	86.5
Finland	79.0	83.0	75.0
France	9.1	nd	nd
Germany**	29.7	20.5	37.1
Greece	32.5	nd	nd
Ireland	44.5	nd	nd
Italy**	35.4	nd	nd
Luxembourg**	50.0	nd	nd
Netherlands*	27.0	20.0	32.0
Norway**	57.0	60.0	55.0
Portugal*	30.0	nd	nd
Sweden*	81.0	83.0	78.0
UK*	29.5	28.0	31.0
Average	50.1?	51.5??	55.4??

Source: EIRO. * 1999 figure; ** 1998 figure, ? Average of 14 countries; ?? average of eight countries.

The figures in table 6 should be read in conjunction with the following notes.

Austria: calculated as total membership of unions affiliated to the Austrian Trade Union Federation (Österreichischer Gewerkschaftsbund, ÖGB) as a % of total employment, as reported in the Eurostat labour force survey 1999; male and female rates calculated in same way.
Belgium: figure for April 2000; calculated as all union members (including unemployed and retired people and students) as a proportion of the labour force.
Denmark: figures, from Statistics Denmark, refer to second quarter of 2000.
Finland: figures from Statistics Finland and Ministry of Labour.
France: figure from International Labour Office (ILO). Ministry of Employment and Solidarity's Office of Research Coordination and Statistics (Direction de l'animation de la recherche et des études statistiques, DARES) calculates rate as 16% in companies with over 50 employees.
Germany: figures from German Federation of Trade Unions (Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund, DGB); overall density was 28.1% in 1999, but no gender break-down available for this year.
Greece: figure is mid range of estimate of 30%-35% produced by Project Research Consulting in December 2000.
Ireland: figure from University College Dublin DUES data series on trade unions in Ireland; figure used is employment density (union membership as a proportion of all those in employment); workforce density (union membership as a proportion of the potential labour force) is 38.5%.
Italy: figure from National Council for Economic Affairs and Labour (Consiglio generale dell'economia e del lavoro, Cnel); calculated as members of Cgil, Cisl and Uil union confederations (excluding autonomous unions) as percentage of labour force (excluding armed forces and magistrates).
Luxembourg: figure is an estimate.
Norway: figures from 1998 FAFO survey.
Netherlands: figures from CBS Social Economic Monthly Statistics (Sociaal-economische Maandstatistiek).
Portugal: figure is a General Workers' Union (União Geral de Trabalhadores, UGT) estimate.
Sweden: figures from research conducted by Anders Kkjellberg of the National Institute for Working Life and Lund University.
UK: figures from ONS labour force survey

Another way of approaching gender issues relating to trade unionism is to examine what proportion of union members are women and men, a factor which might influence trade unions' policies and actions. Once again, however, in relatively few countries do unions or other sources produce a gender breakdown of total union membership figures. Figure 2 gives the proportion of total union membership made up by women in the nine countries for which statistics available. Across these countries, women make up only around four out of 10 union members. However, the picture varies considerably, with women being in a small majority in unions in Finland and Sweden, but representing only a third or less of members in Austria, Germany, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Women are most present in unions in the high-unionisation Nordic countries, unsurprisingly those where union density is highest.

The figures in figure 2 should be read in conjunction with the following notes.

Austria: figure from Austrian Trade Union Federation (Österreichischer Gewerkschaftsbund, ÖGB).
Denmark: figure, from Statistics Denmark, refers to first quarter 2000.
Finland: figure derived from Ministry of Labour Working life barometer.
Germany: figure from DGB.
Ireland: figure from CSO.
Luxembourg: figure is average of two main union confederations - Luxembourg Confederation of Independent Trade Unions (Onofhängege Gewerkschafts-Bond Lëtzebuerg, OGB-L) (31%) and Luxembourg Confederation of Christian Trade Unions (Lëtzebuerger Chrëschtleche Gewerkschafts-Bond, LCGB) (27%).
Netherlands: figure from CBS Social Economic Monthly Statistics.
Sweden: figure from "Fackliga organisationer och medlemmar i dagens Sverige", Anders F Kjellberg, Lund:Arkiv förlag, 2001.
UK: figure, from Equal Opportunities Review, refers to unions affiliated to Trades Union Congress (TUC) only.

Part-time and temporary work

The growing phenomenon of "atypical" forms of employment (though they are increasingly typical for many people) is generally perceived as affecting women more than men. Figure 3, which shows the proportion of all part-time workers who are women in 14 countries (no gender-differentiated data are available for Luxembourg and Portugal), highlights the extent to which this is true for part-time work. It should, however, be noted that the figures are based on national definitions of part-time work and are therefore not fully comparable (see notes to figure 3).

Across the 14 countries, an average of nearly eight out of 10 part-time workers are women. In Belgium, Austria and Germany, 85% or more of part-timers are female. Only in Italy, Finland and Greece are under 75% of part-timers women. Part-time work is clearly an overwhelmingly female phenomenon across western Europe.

The figures in figure 3 should be read in conjunction with the following notes.

Austria: figure from Statistik Austria; part-time work defined as employment with weekly working time of up to 35 hours.
Belgium: figure from INS/NIS labour force survey; part-time work defined as work regularly and voluntarily exercised during a period shorter than the normal one.
Denmark: figure, from Statistics Denmark, refers to second quarter 2000; part-time work as reported by survey respondents' own perception (up to 30-32 hours a week).
Finland: figure from Statistics Finland.
France: figure from INSEE; part-time workers defined (from 2000) as employees working under 35 hours a week in firms with fewer than 20 workers.
Germany: figure from Federal Employment Service (Bundesanstalt für Arbeit); part-time workers defined as employees with a contractual weekly working time below the collectively agreed weekly hours for full-time workers.
Greece: figure is an INE/GSEE-ADEDY estimate.
Ireland: figure from CSO.
Italy: figure from Istat; part-time work as reported by survey respondents' own perception.
Netherlands: figure from CBS working population survey; part-time workers defined as those working 12-36 hours a week.
Norway: unofficial figures produced by FAFO on basis of Statistics Norway labour force surveys; part-time work defined as one to 36 hours a week (except for those employees working 32-36 hours who define themselves as full time).
Spain: figure from INE labour force survey; part-time work as reported by survey respondents' own perception.
Sweden: figure is estimate.
UK: figure from ONS labour force survey; part-time work as reported by survey respondents' own perception.

Turning to the proportion of employees who work part time, table 7 gives figures for all 16 countries in 1999 and 2000 (though data are not available for many countries for 2000). The statistics confirm the extent to which part-time work is dominated by women. In 1999 (the year for which data are available for all countries), across the 15 countries women were some five times more likely to work part time than men. Part-time employment rates for women are 13.7 times higher for women than for men in Luxembourg, 9.6 times higher in Germany, 8.0 times higher in Belgium and 7.4 times higher in Austria. Only in Finland, Greece and Portugal are women's part-time employment rates less than three times the rates for men.

Over three out of 10 women employees in the EU work part time. The lowest levels of women's part-time employment are found in Greece and Italy, though at over 13% these rates are still higher than the EU's highest men's part-time employment rates. Around four out of 10 of female employees are part time in Belgium, Norway, Sweden and the UK, but it is the Netherlands where part-time work is genuinely "typical" for women, affecting some two-thirds of all female employees. Only about one out of 16 male employees in the EU works part time. The highest levels, at around one in 10, are found in Norway, the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden, while male part-time employment rates of 5% and less are recorded in Austria, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and Spain.

**Table 7. Proportion of employees working part time, women and men, 1999 and 2000**
Country	All		Women		Men
	1999	2000	1999	2000	1999	2000
Austria	16.8	nd	32.5	nd	4.4	nd
Belgium	19.5	nd	39.1	nd	4.9	nd
Denmark	20.8	nd	33.9	nd	9.6	nd
Finland	11.9	nd	16.7	nd	7.1	nd
France	18.1	17.7	32.3	31.7	5.8	5.6
Germany*	13.9	nd	27.9	nd	2.9	nd
Greece	8.9	9.0	13.4	13.6	5.9	6.0
Ireland	16.7	nd	30.6	nd	7.4	nd
Italy	8.2	8.9	15.7	16.7	3.4	3.6
Luxembourg	10.7	nd	24.6	nd	1.8	nd
Netherlands	28.5	nd	67.0	nd	10.0	nd
Norway	26.2	25.5	44.6	42.8	10.3	10.4
Portugal	11.7	nd	16.7	nd	6.3	nd
Spain	8.6	8.3	17.9	17.2	2.9	2.6
Sweden	23.8	nd	40.0	nd	9.4	nd
UK	24.8	nd	44.4	nd	8.9	nd
Average	16.8	.	31.1	.	6.3	.

Source: EIRO. * 1998 figures.

The figures in table 7 should be read in conjunction with the following notes.

Austria: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999.
Belgium: figures from INS/NIS labour force survey.
Denmark: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999.
Finland: figures from Statistics Finland.
France: figures from INSEE labour force surveys.
Germany: figures from Federal Employment Service.
Greece: figures for 1999 are from ESYE; figures for 2000 are an INE/GSEE-ADEDY estimate.
Ireland: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999.
Italy: figures from Istat; part-time work as reported by survey respondents' own perception.
Luxembourg: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999.
Netherlands: figures from CBS working population survey.
Norway: unofficial figures produced by FAFO on basis of Statistics Norway labour force surveys.
Portugal: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999.
Spain: total figures from INE labour force survey; gender-differentiated figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999.
Sweden: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999.
UK: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999.

Turning to another main form of "atypical" employment - work which is temporary or fixed-term in some way - figure 4 shows the proportion of all such fixed-term/temporary/casual workers who are women in 13 countries (no gender-differentiated data are available for Austria, Ireland and Sweden). The figure highlights that temporary and fixed-term work is by no means so clearly a female-dominated form of employment as part-time work. It should, however, be noted that the figures are based on national definitions of fixed-term/temporary/casual work, sometimes not including all types, and are therefore not fully comparable (see notes to figure 4).

Across the 13 countries for which data are available, women make up a very small majority of fixed-term/temporary/casual workers. They are in a majority in seven countries and a minority in six. Time-limited employment is most obviously female-dominated in Luxembourg, where 65% of such employees are women. By contrast, women make up under 45% of fixed-term/temporary/casual workers in Greece, Germany and Spain.

The figures in figure 4 should be read in conjunction with the following notes.

Belgium: figure from INS/NIS labour force survey.
Denmark: figure, from Statistics Denmark, refers to "time-limited employment", second quarter 2000.
Finland: figure from Statistics Finland.
France: figure from INSEE; defined as temporary agency workers, fixed-term contract workers, apprentices and people on work experience/state-subsidised contracts (central government and local government staff excluded).
Germany: figure from Federal Statistical Office; defined as employees with a fixed-term employment contract.
Greece: figure is INE/GSEE-ADEDY estimate.
Luxembourg: figure from STATEC.
Italy: figure from Istat .
Netherlands: figure, from CBS working population survey, excludes fixed-term contracts.
Norway: unofficial figures produced by FAFO on basis of Statistics Norway labour force surveys; defined as "temporary contract, ie for a fixed time".
Portugal: figure, from Ministry of Labour and Solidarity's Department of Labour, Employment and Vocational Training Statistics (Departamento de Estatística do Trabalho, Emprego e Formação Profissional, DETEFP), refers only to temporary agency work, January 2000.
Spain: figure from INE labour force survey, refers to fixed-term contract workers only.
UK: figure, from ONS labour force survey, includes casual/seasonal work, temporary agency work and fixed-term contracts

Turning to the proportion of employees who work on a fixed-term/temporary/casual basis, table 8 gives figures for all 16 countries in 1999 and 2000 (though data are not available for many countries for 2000). The statistics confirm that time-limited work is much more equally distributed between women and men than part-time work, though the former are still in a majority on average across the EU. In 1999 (the year for which data are available for all countries), across the 15 countries women were nearly 30% more likely to work on a fixed-term/temporary/casual basis than men. In 13 countries, female fixed-term/temporary/casual employment rates were higher than those for men, but the opposite was the case in France, Germany and Portugal. Where female fixed-term/temporary/casual employment rates were higher, the gap was smallest in Austria and the UK and greatest in Belgium, Finland, Norway, Ireland and the Netherlands (where women are twice as likely as men to be in time-limited employment).

Spain is a special case, with nearly a third of all employees working on a fixed-term/temporary/casual basis, around twice the level found in any other EU country. This high level of time-limited employment affects both women and men, though the rate for the former is 3.6 percentage points higher than for the latter. Excluding Spain, the highest levels of women's fixed-term/temporary/casual employment are found in Finland, Sweden and Greece, while the lowest levels are found in Luxembourg, the UK, Portugal and Austria. Again excluding Spain, the highest levels of men's fixed-term/temporary/casual employment are found in Finland, Sweden and Greece, while the lowest levels are found in Luxembourg, the Netherlands and the UK.

**Table 8. % of dependent employees working on fixed-term/temporary/casual basis, women and men, 1999 and 2000**
Country	All		Women		Men
	1999	2000	1999	2000	1999	2000
Austria	7.5	nd	7.8	nd	7.3	nd
Belgium	9.8	nd	13.2	nd	7.2	nd
Denmark	10.2	nd	11.3	nd	9.2	nd
Finland	16.9	nd	19.8	nd	13.9	nd
France	10.1	10.9	10.0	10.7	10.3	11.0
Germany	9.2	nd	8.7	nd	9.6	nd
Greece	12.8	13.0	14.8	15.0	11.6	11.8
Ireland	9.4	nd	12.1	nd	7.1	nd
Italy	9.5	10.1	11.5	12.2	8.2	8.7
Luxembourg	3.4	nd	4.3	nd	2.8	nd
Netherlands	9.0	nd	12.0	nd	6.0	nd
Norway	9.8	9.7	12.5	11.8	7.2	7.8
Portugal	16.2	15.5	7.6	7.3	8.5	8.1
Spain	32.7	32.1	34.9	34.6	31.3	30.5
Sweden	13.9	nd	16.6	nd	11.2	nd
UK	6.8	nd	7.5	nd	6.2	nd
Average	11.7	.	12.8	.	9.9	.

Source: EIRO. * 1998 figures.

The figures in table 8 should be read in conjunction with the following notes.

Austria: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999; defined as employment under contract of limited duration..
Belgium: figures from INS/NIS labour force survey.
Denmark: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999; defined as employment under contract of limited duration.
Finland: figures from Statistics Finland.
France: figures from INSEE; defined as temporary agency workers, fixed-term contract workers, apprentices and people on work experience/state-subsidised contracts (central government and local government staff excluded).
Germany: figures, from Federal Statistical Office, refer to whole of Germany; figures for west Germany are 8.0% for all employees, 7.5% for women and 8.4% for men; figures for east Germany are 14.5% for all employees, 13.8% for women and 15.0% for men.
Greece: figures for 1999 are from ESYE; figures for 2000 are an INE/GSEE-ADEDY estimate.
Ireland: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999; defined as employment under contract of limited duration.
Italy: figures from Istat.
Luxembourg: overall figures from Eurostat; gender-differentiated figures from STATEC.
Netherlands: figures from CBS working population survey.
Norway: unofficial figures produced by FAFO on basis of Statistics Norway labour force surveys.
Portugal: figures from Quadros de Pessoal, Ministry of Labour and Solidarity; 1999 figure refers to October, 2000 figure to January.
Spain: figures from INE labour force survey.
Sweden: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999; defined as employment under contract of limited duration.
UK: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999; defined as employment under contract of limited duration.

Education levels

The final area examined in this annual update is the education level of the labour force. Gender differences in this area may help explain differences in other employment-related areas, or may highlight inequalities (eg, if women are as likely as men, or more likely, to have a university education, then their continued absence from higher positions in companies and other organisations is thrown into sharp relief). Table 9 gives 1999 statistics for all countries on the proportion of the labour force with a university-level education, while table 10 provides figures on the proportion of the labour force whose highest level of educational attainment is the completion of secondary education only. The very different natures of national educational systems and of definitions used means that it is extremely difficult to draw meaningful comparisons between countries. However, some comments can be made on the relationship between the figures for men and women in the various countries.

On average across the 16 countries, women in the labour force (18.7%) are slightly more likely than men (17.8%) to have a university-level education. However, comparing countries, there seems to be no very clear trend. A greater proportion of men than women have a university-level education in seven countries (Austria, Belgium, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and the UK) while the opposite is true in the remaining nine countries (Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden). The largest differences in favour of men are found in the Netherlands, where men in the labour force are 80% more likely than women to have a university-level education, and Luxembourg (40%). The largest differences in favour of women are found in Spain, where women in the labour force are 55% more likely than men to have a university-level education, and Italy (31%).

The same contrasting picture applies to the proportion of the labour force who have completed secondary education only. The overall averages are 37.9% for women and 35.8% for men. In six countries (Denmark, Finland, Luxembourg, Norway, Portugal and Spain), a greater proportion of men than of women have completed secondary education only, while the reverse is true in nine countries (Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden and the UK) and the figures are even in Greece. By and large, countries where more men than women have a secondary-level education only are those where more women than men have a university-level education, and vice versa (though with exceptions such as Luxembourg and Sweden). The differences between the proportions of women and men with a secondary education only are rarely great. The largest differences in favour of men are found in Denmark, where men in the labour force are 13% more likely than women to have a secondary-level education only, and Spain (11%). The largest differences in favour of women are found in the UK, where women in the labour force are 56% more likely than men to have a secondary-level education only, and Italy (33%). (Mark Carley, SPIRE Associates)

**Table 9. % of labour force with a university-level education, 1999**
Country	All	Women	Men
Austria	7.2	6.1	7.9
Belgium	10.8	9.4	11.7
Denmark	27.5	28.2	26.8
Finland	24.6	26.5	22.7
France	22.7	24.6	18.4
Germany	24.7	23.7	25.6
Greece	15.2	17.0	13.9
Ireland	23.2	22.9	23.4
Italy	11.1	13.0	9.9
Luxembourg	19.3	16.1	22.4
Netherlands	7.0	5.0	9.0
Norway	28.0	29.1	27.0
Portugal*	6.0	6.8	5.2
Spain	17.3	22.0	14.2
Sweden**	23.0	26.0	22.0
UK**	23.0	22.9	24.2
Average	18.2	18.7	17.8

Source: EIRO. * 1998 figure; ** 2000 figure.

The figures in table 9 should be read in conjunction with the following notes.

Austria: figures from Statistik Austria.
Belgium: figures from INS/NIS labour force survey.
Denmark: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999; defined as completion of third-level education.
Finland: figures from Statistics Finland.
France: figures from INSEE labour force survey; defined as people with two years' post-secondary education and graduates.
Germany: figures, from Federal Statistical Office, refer to people having reached matriculation standard; 9.5% of whole labour force, 8.2% of women and 10.5% of men had university degree.
Greece: figures from ESYE.
Ireland: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999; defined as completion of third-level education.
Italy: figures from Istat.
Luxembourg: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999; defined as completion of third-level education .
Netherlands: figures from CBS Emancipation Monitor 2000.
Norway: figures from Statistics Norway labour force surveys.
Portugal: figures from INE labour force survey.
Spain: figures from INE labour force survey.
Sweden: figures from Statistics Sweden.
UK: figures from ONS labour force survey.

**Table 10. % of labour force having completed secondary education only, 1999**
Country	All	Women	Men
Austria	15.8	17.6	14.5
Belgium	35.9	36.1	35.8
Denmark	53.7	50.3	57.0
Finland	37.1	35.4	38.9
France	15.8	17.4	14.5
Germany	75.5	76.8	74.4
Greece	29.6	29.6	29.6
Ireland	28.1	32.1	24.1
Italy	38.8	44.3	35.3
Luxembourg	44.8	43.4	46.1
Netherlands	31.5	34.0	29.0
Norway	68.1	67.1	69.1
Portugal*	10.3	10.3	10.4
Spain	27.4	25.7	28.6
Sweden**	44.0	53.0	44.0
UK**	28.1	34.0	21.8
Average	36.5	37.9	35.8

Source: EIRO. * 1998 figure; ** 2000 figure.

The figures in table 10 should be read in conjunction with the following notes.

Austria: figures from Statistik Austria.
Belgium: figures from INS/NIS labour force survey.
Denmark: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999; defined as completion of upper secondary level education.
Finland: figure from Statistics Finland.
France: figures from INSEE labour force survey; defined as people with baccalauréat, vocational diploma and other qualifications at this level, plus those having studied ay post-secondary level.
Germany: figures from Federal Statistical Office.
Greece: figures from ESYE.
Ireland: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999; defined as completion of upper secondary level education.
Italy: figures from Istat.
Luxembourg: figures from Eurostat labour force survey 1999; defined as completion of upper secondary level education .
Netherlands: figures from CBS Emancipation Monitor 2000.
Norway: figures from Statistics Norway labour force surveys.
Portugal: figure from INE labour force survey.
Spain: figures from INE labour force survey.
Sweden: figures from Statistics Sweden.
UK: figures from ONS labour force survey.

Page last updated: 28 March, 2001

^Back to top of page

About this document

ID: TN0103201U
Author: Mark Carley, SPIRE Associates
Country: EU Countries
Language: EN
Publication date: 28-03-2001