According to the latest figures published by the European Commission, women earn in the EU an average of 16.4% less than men. This is the reason why the Commission is raising awareness on the gender pay gap among the European citizens celebration the European Equal Pay Day. This year’s Equal Pay Day focuses in particular on employers.

The European Commission published the figures which show an average 16.4% gender pay gap in 2010 across the European Union. They confirm a slight downward trend in recent years, when the figure was around 17% or higher. The rate ranges from around 2% in Poland to more than 27% in Estonia.

According to the Commission, awareness-raising activities are essential to inform employers, employees and stakeholders why there is still a gender pay gap and how it can be reduced. Reducing the gender pay gap requires action on several levels to tackle its multiple causes, which is why the Commission works on this closely with Member States. For instance, in December 2011, the Commission organised an exchange of good practices to tackle the gender pay gap. In addition, since 2009, the European Equal Pay Day is being celebrated. Recently, the Committee on Women's Rights at the European Parliament approved a resolution asking for quotas to increase women's representation.

The number of cases of direct discrimination – differences in pay between men and women doing exactly the same job – has fallen, thanks to EU and national legislation on equal pay, but the pay gap goes far beyond this, reflecting ongoing inequality in the overall job market. The gender pay gap – the average difference in gross hourly earnings between women and men across the economy as a whole – is persistently high, with considerable differences between countries and sectors. It reflects the problem of balancing work and private life: many women take parental leave and have part-time jobs. Despite the generally slightly positive trend, there are Member States where the gender pay gap is widening, such as Bulgaria, France, Latvia, Hungary, Portugal and Romania.