Gender pay gap

Gender pay gap refers to the difference between the average gross hourly wages and salaries of male and female employees by economic activity at the letter code level. Part-time employees' earnings are also taken into account when comparing gross hourly wages and salaries. Hourly wages and salaries are used to calculate the gender pay gap on the basis of a pan-European methodology.

The gender pay gap is calculated by subtracting the average gross hourly wages and salaries of female employees from those of male employees and dividing the difference by the average gross hourly wages and salaries of male employees. The gap is expressed as a percentage.

All economically active enterprises, institutions, and organisations with at least one employee are taken into account. Employees include persons working under employment contracts, the Civil Service Act, and service contracts.

Statistics on the gender pay gap based on a common methodology have been published since 2011. The data needed for calculating the pay gap are collected with a questionnaire – every four years the Structure of Earnings Survey data are used, and a shortened questionnaire is used in the years between the surveys.

October is selected as the representative month for the gender pay gap.

The difference between the wages and salaries of men and women is shown in Statistics Estonia's earnings application. These data are taken from administrative sources.