Priorities for strengthening gender equality in Europe - a BusinessEurope position paper

Key messages

• Increasing women’s economic activity is key to promoting gender equality in society and contributing to European competitiveness. A prerequisite is to ensure equal opportunities for women and men to work as employees and entrepreneurs throughout life. Essential for such activities are social protection and taxation systems conducive to work, as well as high-quality, accessible and affordable childcare and long-term care infrastructure and financing.
• Informed choices are vital to achieving greater gender equality. Understanding the economic implications of decisions related to education, occupation and labour market participation is crucial to tackling gender segregation and remuneration gaps. Addressing gender segregation across all industries should be a key priority, as it will foster greater equality, diversify skillsets, and drive Europe’s competitiveness.
• The digital and green transitions require a workforce skilled in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), and ICT (Information and Communication Technology), areas where women are still underrepresented. While increasing women’s engagement in STEM and ICT is critical to driving technological advancement, economic growth, and innovation, it is equally important to promote men’s labour market participation in sectors where they are underrepresented.