According to the dictionary, gender gap is a «significant difference between the social sexes in terms of living conditions, income, behaviour, abilities, interests, etc.»..
The difference between the sexes in terms of pay is also called the «gender pay gap».
How does the gender gap manifest itself?
In Switzerland, the gender gap manifests itself primarily in terms of salary and professional position. In plain language:
- Women earn on average 1500 francs less per month than men.
- Almost half of these wage differences (48%) cannot be explained by objective factors such as professional position, years of service or level of education.
- Wage differences already exist at the start of a career: young men earn on average 280 francs more per month than young women when they start their careers.
This is confirmed by the salary structure survey conducted by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) in 2020.
Incidentally, the latest surveys show that trans and non-binary people are also affected by the gender gap.
