“98%” of companies “still need to make efforts to advance equality between women and men”.
The professional equality index between women and men, published each year on March 8, stagnated between 2023 and 2024, but the number of companies which published their score increased, according to the figures unveiled Thursday evening by the Ministry of Labor.
“The average score declared by companies remains at the high level observed in 2023, with a score of 88/100 in 2024,” indicates the ministry on the eve of International Women’s Day.
In 2024, only 2% of companies obtained the maximum score of 100. The rate of companies concerned having declared their index as of March 5 is 77%, compared to 72% in 2023 on the same date.
Every year on March 1, companies with more than 50 employees must calculate and publish their index.
It is measured on 100 points with five criteria: the gender pay gap (40 points), the gap in annual increases (20 points), the gap in promotions (15 points), increases upon return maternity leave (15 points) and the share of women in the ten highest earners (10 points).
Penalty up to 1% of payroll
When the overall score is below 75, the company must take corrective action within three years.
Some 4% of companies obtained a score lower than 75 this year, compared to 5% in 2023. The ministry specifies that 77 companies “have had a score lower than 75 for 4 years and are therefore penalized”, the financial penalty being up to at 1% of the payroll.
Concerning the indicator relating to increases upon return from maternity leave, more than 6% of companies, or more than 1,500 of them, obtained the worst score, 0. Parity in the ten best remuneration stagnates with a score of 5 out of 10, with 28% of companies achieving the maximum score of 10, while 32% of companies have fewer than two women in the top ten earners.