Women in Luxembourg earn more than men, but that’s not the whole story

Data from Statec reveals a growing education gap between both genders, especially among younger generations

Yesterday, the Luxembourgish Statistical Office Statec published the latest figures on the gender pay gap between men and women in the country. The publication comes on the occasion of International Women’s Day on 8 March and the data shows that women earned 0.2% more per hour on average compared to men in 2021.

This analysis focuses on the private sector and according to authorities it shows the progress the Grand Duchy has made on the issue of equal wages as just in 2006, that figure was 10.7% in favour of men.

At the same time, this figure reveals only part of the picture, as it only shows wages on an hourly basis. However, when considering yearly earnings, men still outperform because over 30% of women in Luxembourg are employed part-time.

The data reveals disparities in education

According to Statec, the growth of women’s salaries will not stop here and experts project a difference of 0.4% in favour of women in 2022 and further in the coming years, considering a consistent trajectory.  Researchers attribute this development to several factors, including an a-typical labour market in the country and a disparity in education.

Luxembourg has a highly developed and specialised services sector, which favours employees with higher levels of education. Additionally, women have a higher education level than men, which is widening even further with younger generations.

According to Statec, among employees aged 25 to 35, women started earning 7% more than men on average in 2018. Moreover, the education gap becomes more apparent considering women tend to be more present in branches of the economy in Luxembourg with relatively high salaries like education, health, finance, research, legal services and etc.

At the same time, researchers highlight that the men-to-women ratio seems to be fairly even in middle and higher-salary positions, even if the fairer sex remains under-represented in very high-salary groups.

Significant gaps by sector

Despite the overall balanced outlook on the Gender Pay Gap in Luxembourg, considering yearly earnings, women earn 13% less than men, as nearly every third woman is only employed part-time.

Additionally, there are still very big discrepancies in different sectors of the economy. Some of the biggest outliers are the real estate sector (23.1% in favour of men), the financial and insurance sector (23% in favour of men) and the scientific and technical sector (21.9% in favour of men).  

On the other hand, women's hourly wages are almost 14% higher in the construction sector and almost 17% higher in the arts, entertainment and recreation sector and around 3.3% in waste management.