Portugal was the only country in the European Union to have a worse score than the previous year when it comes to equality at work, according to a report by the European Institute for Gender Equality in the Gender Equality Index 2024, published in Lusa, a Portuguese news agency.

The report assessed the 27 members states in six categories including work, money, knowledge, time, power and health. The Index used data from 2022 and charted progress in the short term (2021-2022) and the long-term (2010-2022).

“In most countries, the increase in score was negligible, ranging from 0.1 points to 1.2 points,” the Index states.

Between 2021 and 2022, Portugal’s score decreased slightly by 0.2 points, causing the country to drop five places in the EU ranking to 14^th place.

“This decline is mainly due to the increase in gender inequality in the segregation and quality of work subdomain, resulting in a decrease of 1.2 points and a drop in the ranking from 16^th to 19^th place,” the report reads (referencing the quality of work category).

In the long-term, the report noted that since 2010, employment has ‘increased more for women than for men’ and that the gender pay gap in the full-time equivalent employment rate has been steadily decreasing from 13 percentage points in 2010 to 9 points in 2022.

The report highlighted significant gender disparities, including a 32 percentage point gap between single women and men, a 17 percentage point gap among those with low educational attainment, and disadvantages for foreign-born women compared to men, all to the detriment of women.

It also emphasised progress in women’s participation in economic decision-making, noting that representation on the boards of the largest listed companies increased from 33% in 2023 to 35% in 2024. It also highlights a 23% rise in women serving on central bank boards since 2022, reaching 43% in 2023.

The report recalls Portugal’s 2018 introduction of mandatory gender quotas for stock exchange-listed companies, requiring at least 33% representation of the underrepresented gender

The Index also noted that Portugal has been narrowing its gap with other EU member states, with its Gender Equality Index score improving faster than the EU average, despite starting from a lower baseline.