The gender pay gap increased slightly in 2013

Photo: SCANPIX

According to Statistics Estonia, in October 2013, the gross hourly earnings of female employees were 24.8% lower than the gross hourly earnings of male employees, and the gender pay gap grew by 0.2 percentage points compared to the previous year. The gender pay gap was almost non-existent in transportation and storage.

The gross hourly earnings without irregular bonuses and premiums were 4.58 euros for female employees and 6.09 euros for male employees. Compared to 2012, hourly earnings increased 7.0% for female employees and 7.2% for male employees, which was one reason for the minimal rise in the gender pay gap. The biggest gender pay gap in Estonia was recorded in 1994 – 28.9%.

The gender pay gap was almost non-existent in transportation and storage. In this economic activity, female employees had 0.2% higher hourly earnings than male employees. Compared to 2012, the number of both male and female employees in transportation and storage decreased, but the hourly earnings increased 13.8% for women and 10.8% for men – this is why the pay gap has disappeared. The share of male employees among all employees in transportation and storage was 71%.

In 2013 the gender pay gap was still the biggest in financial and insurance activities (41.8%). The pay gap decreased by 1.5 percentage points compared to 2012. The number of both female and male employees in financial and insurance activities decreased, but the gross hourly earnings rose 5.8% for women and 3.0% for men, which resulted in a lower gender pay gap. Men constituted 28% of employees in this economic activity.

Compared to 2012, the gender pay gap increased the most (by 14.9 percentage points) in other service activities (this includes laundries, dry-cleaning, beauty treatment etc.) and decreased the most (by 7.8 percentage points) in arts, entertainment and recreation. In both economic activities, there were big changes in the number of employees and hourly earnings.

The gender pay gap is influenced by the rises and falls in the gross hourly earnings of male and female employees in different economic activities, and by the level of hourly earnings of engaged and left employees. On the one hand, the gender pay gap increased slightly in 2013; on the other hand, the share of male employees among all employees fell from 48% in 2012 to 47% in 2013.

Statistics Estonia and Eurostat use a different methodology to calculate the gender pay gap. The gender pay gap published by Eurostat does not take into account the indicators of enterprises and institutions with fewer than 10 employees; it also excludes the earnings of employees in agriculture, forestry and fishing and in public administration and defence. With Eurostat’s methodology, the gender pay gap in Estonia is one of the biggest in the European Union (30% in 2012). According to Statistics Estonia, the gender pay gap in Estonia in 2012 was 24.6%, taking into account all enterprises and institutions and all economic activities.