Higher education levels lead to lower employment gap between men and women

The gender employment gap in the EU decreased as education levels increased for adults living with children in the household, according to a 2024 study by the EU’s statistical office, Eurostat, published on 06/03/2026.

For people with "low education" (lower secondary education or less), the gender employment gap was high. In this category, 68.5% of men and 56.2% of women in households with no children were employed, a gap of 12.3%. The gap increased to 26.1% with one child in the household, 35.8% with two children, and 42.1% with three or more children, with men having a higher employment rate in each scenario.

For people with "medium education" (upper secondary and post-secondary non-tertiary education), the gender employment gap drastically decreased for those with no children, with 85.1% of men and 79.8% of women being employed, a gap of 5.3%. The gap jumped to 15.7% with one child in the household, 19.5% with two, and 33% with three or more.

The employment gap among people with "high education" (tertiary education and university degrees) was less pronounced. For those without…