Commissioner: Gender pay gap close to 10% in Cyprus

The gender pay gap in Cyprus is at 9.9%, which means that women receive 90 cents for every euro men receive, Commissioner for Gender Equality Josie Christodoulou has said.

This in turn means that women often earn less money than men, making it difficult for them to maintain their autonomy, to meet their own needs and the needs of their family, she added.

She was addressing an event in Nicosia on "Female Poverty” organised by the Cyprus Association of Single-Parent Families and Friends. Christodoulou said that the pay gap also has long-term implications for pensions, where it stands at 37.2% and brings elderly women closer to the poverty threshold.

She also said that women are more often employed in part-time jobs and in low-wage sectors that offer little job security, making it even more difficult for them to escape the poverty spectrum.

According to the Commissioner, half of women who are single parents (48%) and one third of men (32%) who are single parents are at risk of poverty or social exclusion, with women being most affected as they make up almost 85% of single-parent families in the EU (EIGE).

From her part Deputy Minister of Social Welfare Marilena Evangelou, reiterated the government's strong will to address the issues that concern single-parent families, and noted that solution will be reached through consultation, meeting concerns.

Evangelou also noted that in the context of the implementation of the state's targeted social policy, the Deputy Ministry offers the child benefit and the single-parent family benefit on the basis of income, property and other criteria.

As she said, in 2022, single-parent family allowance was paid to 11,464 families of which 10,715 were led by women.

(Source: CNA)