Gender equality in the workplace – The situation today

Women make up 50 percent of the global population. In meeting the challenges of tomorrow's economy, businesses cannot afford to overlook the talents offered by this half of the population.

Women have made significant strides on the labor market throughout the world. The employment rate for women is increasing faster than that of men, especially in countries where they have traditionally had a lower rate of employment. The rate has reached 53% globally (ILO 2004), which represents 42.1% of total salaried employment (ILO 2004). Progress in reducing gender-based employment differences for high-status jobs and compensation gaps has been considerably slower (disparity in pay is estimated to be 15% in the European Union and nearly 20% in the United States), despite the remarkable rise in women's education levels.

Even more so than other sectors, the pharmaceutical industry must take advantage of the enormous pool of talent women represent, in particular women with medical and pharmacy degrees across the globe. In France, women represent 56.6% of students graduating from medical school and 66.7% of pharmacy school graduates. In Europe, only 15% of researchers in industry are women even though they receive 55% of the post-graduate degrees in this discipline (report on Women in Industrial Research).

Efforts to promote equal employment opportunities for women must be continued by combating, both directly and indirectly, the discrimination they may be victims of and by helping all employees to reconcile paid work and family responsibilities.

Go to the Global Report "Equality at work: Tackling the challenge" from the I.L.O (International Labour Organization)
Go to the report on Women in Industrial Research