Gender pay gap: how men earn 14pc more

MEN earn 14pc more than women, even through the gender pay gap in Ireland is lower than the EU and UK averages.

New figures reveal that the disparity in the average hourly earnings of male and female employees is 12th lowest out of 31 countries.

And the gender pay gap here is well below the 21pc difference in men’s and women’s earnings in the UK, and the EU average of 16pc.

However, there is plenty of room for improvement as the gap is as low as 5pc elsewhere.

This includes Romania, Italy, and Luxembourg.

The gender pay gap is worst in Estonia at a massive 25pc, followed by the Czech Republic, Germany and the UK, all at 21pc, according to the Eurostat report.

The report, ‘The Life of Women and Men in Europe – A Statistical Portrait, 2018 edition’, says on average women earn less than men in all member states. “However, this gender pay gap varies,” it said.

“The largest differences were observed in Estonia (25pc), the Czech Republic (21pc), Germany (21pc), the UK (21) and Austria (20pc).

“On the other hand, the smallest differences in earnings between women and men were found in Romania (5pc), Italy (5pc), Luxembourg (5pc), Belgium (6pc) and Poland (7pc).”

It said part of the difference can be explained by differences in men and women’s experience and education and the sectors they work in.

For example, there are more men than women in certain jobs and industries that have higher earnings.

“Consequently, the pay gap is linked to a number of cultural, legal, social and economic factors which go far beyond the single issue of equal pay for equal work,” it said.

The report also finds that the biggest gap in hourly earnings between men and women was among managers – at 23pc.

The smallest difference was between male and female clerical support staff including office workers and secretaries and service and sales workers, where women’s earnings are 8pc lower than men’s.

However, these professions have the lowest salaries.

The report also reveals that Irish men are slower to fly the nest and get married than women, but living with their parents longer does not lead to a longer life.

And it’s the same story with their counterparts in all EU countries.

Irish women get married two years earlier than men – which is similar to the difference in Portugal and the UK.

Across the EU, the average age that women left the parental home is two years earlier than men, at 25, while men stay until they are 27.

Irish women outlive men by fewer than four years – and the average across the EU is five.

But Irish men fare better than Latvian and Lithuanians, who die between 10 and 11 years earlier than women.

The pay gap is linked to cultural, social and economic factors