text: Diana Stanciu

Before reaching the 2022 report, the question will most likely arise: "What is the Gender Equality Index?". 

According to the European Institute for Gender Equality, the Gender Equality Index is a tool for measuring the progress of gender equality in the European Union, developed by EIGE. It gives more visibility to areas that need development, and then helps policy officials design more effective gender equality measures.

The areas that require development are the following: work, economy, knowledge, time, power and health.

Returning to the report for the year 2022 → The important points

The European Union's gender equality index score is 68.6 points out of 100. This score denotes a small development, but only that. Progress in terms of gender equality is largely determined by the field of power, the field in which the largest gender inequalities are registered in the European Union. Without this domain, the index score would have decreased due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected the small progress made since 2010. For the first time in a decade, gender inequalities in employment, education, health status and access to health services have increased. Gender gaps in the risk of poverty and income distribution between women and men remained constant.

Field of work:

Labor progress has the third highest score (71.7 points) in the Index, but has stagnated. A small improvement in the gender segregation gap is offset by larger gender gaps in employment and working life.

The sectors most affected by the lockdowns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic are mainly dominated by women, as women tend to work more in service sectors and jobs with high levels of social interaction. At the same time, a greater share of women than men in essential sectors (e.g. education and healthcare) and work that can be done remotely may have helped keep many women in jobs during the pandemic.

Money field:

The domain of money is the second in terms of score in the Index, with 82.6 points. The subdomain of the economic situation leads, with 88.3 points, while that of financial resources lags behind, at 77.2 points. Given an overall progress in this area from a low of 0.2 in the year 2021, setbacks are feared once the consequences of the pandemic are fully known.

Gender differences in monthly earnings are larger in old age. Women over the age of 65 tend to earn 48 % less than men of the same age, which is the result of the cumulative impact of lifelong gender inequalities in working careers.

The pandemic has increased economic vulnerability for many people, especially women with low levels of education. Women's incomes have been affected by reduced working hours, absenteeism or unpaid leave. More women were excluded from the workforce, with a third of unemployed women citing caregiving as the reason. Women are less likely to receive unemployment or wage support than men.

Domain of knowledge:

This domain ranked fourth in the Index, with a score of 62.5 points. The gender equality bone of education has made no progress since the 2021 report and has seen an evolution of only 2.7 points since the 2010 report. Progress has been hindered by gender segregation in education. Female students are outnumbered by male students in the fields of health and wellbeing education, humanities and arts, with 4.1 million women studying these subjects in 2020 compared to 1.7 million men.

271TP2Among women and 26% among men in the European Union are university graduates. The numerical superiority of women in education is particularly pronounced among graduates between the ages of 25 and 49. Disabilities prevent access to tertiary education, especially for women, only 15 % of women and 18 % of men with disabilities have graduated from University.

The pandemic exacerbated inequalities in the education system.

Time domain:

The time domain continues to be one of the lowest scoring domains with 64.9 points. The negative trend can be observed, mostly determined by the gender inequality in the time spent in social activities.

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a dramatic increase in unpaid home care, putting immense pressure on people, especially women, to balance work and life. Women with children under 12, especially single mothers, had the most work-life conflicts and the greatest number of childcare hours. The pandemic has also highlighted the fragile working conditions of long-term care workers.

Power Domain:

The field of power made the biggest work from 2010 until now, real changes in gender equality. Next is the field with the lowest score, of 57.2 points. women remain significantly underrepresented in political life. These representing 33 % of the members of the national Parliament and a little over a third of the members of the regional, local/municipal assemblies (35 %, respectively 34 %).

Emergency and recovery decisions in the COVID-19 pandemic were largely made by men. During the pandemic and until March 2022, only one in four health ministers in the European Union and less than four in 10 deputy ministers were women. As of April 2022, 44 % of the members of scientific advisory committees in the European Union were women. although their presence on these committees increased in 2021 and 2022, a gender gap persists.

Health field:

The health domain tops the Index in 2022 with 88.7 points and shows a slight improvement over 2021.

Gender inequalities in access to health services have increased during the pandemic. However, this sub-domain has the smallest gender equality gap in health. Gender equality in health behaviour, although still quite low, is improving. However, inequalities in health status persist and are almost unchanged.

The pandemic has put unprecedented pressure on the health sector and exposed its fragility. Among healthcare workers, more women than men have post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression and burnout symptoms. Women, the elderly, and smokers are at greater risk of long-term COVID. The mental health of young people has also been severely affected by the pandemic, with an increase in suicide attempts among teenagers.

Scope of violence:

In 2020, 775 women were victims of murder by a family member or intimate partner in 17 EU member states, according to Eurostat. Data on gender-based violence continue to be limited and incomparable in the European Union. Clear, comprehensive and systematic definitions of all forms of violence against girls and women are essential for informed policy and decision-making.

Psychological or digital forms of violence against women can be exacerbated by factors that intensify discriminatory behavior and violence and hate crimes. Women with disabilities or health conditions experience psychological violence in intimate relationships approximately 1.5 times more than women without.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the prevalence and severity of gender-based violence has increased, particularly in digital forms of violence affecting women. This includes online harassment and image-based sexual abuse. Young women are more exposed to cyberbullying, image-based sexual abuse and psychological violence.

If you want to find out more information about the gender equality index, you can find it on the official website of the European Institute for Gender Equality, by clicking Here.