Equal Pay Day

Women have worked for free so far in 2025

This is unfair: according to calculations, women earn 40 percent less than men. If children are involved, the gap widens even further. Then men earn almost twice as much. The difference is so great that women would have to work 44 days more a year to earn the same.

Regardless of whether they have children or not, women are paid less than men at work. Recent calculations by the Momentum Institute have shown that the pay gap is 40 percent on average. This year, women are even working "for free" until February 13. Equal Pay Day falls on this day this year.

Equal Pay Day indicates how many days a year women would have to work more than men in order to earn the same amount. This year it is 44 days.

Children further increase the pay gap
And if women have a child, the pay gap widens even further: women then earn 47 percent less. If at least one child is younger than six years old, the difference is then an incredible 53 percent.

There are several reasons for the gender pay gap. "Equal work must be paid equally, but very rarely do couples work in the same profession," says Sophie Achleitner, economist at the Momentum Institute. 

"Women's professions" paid less
Occupations in which mainly women work are paid less on average. These include, for example, sales assistants or office work. So should women simply change jobs? Unfortunately, it's not that simple, says the Momentum Institute.

Because even when women work as managers, they earn less than men. In the country's executive suites, women are still paid around a quarter less than their male colleagues.