In France, some regions display wages between women and men well above the national average. One of them sadly wins the title of worst student in terms of equal pay …
Every beginning of November is the same catchphrase. From this date, women are supposed to “work for free” until the end of the year. In question? The remuneration gap always very real between men and women on the labor market. Several factors explain this persistent difference: women are more often part -time, less present in positions of responsibility and concentrated in less well -paid employment sectors. This salary difference can also vary depending on the sectors: in public transport, for example, the differences are minimal.
However, equal salary is not a recent concept. Forty years ago, the Labor Code adopted a major law. “”Any employer is required to ensure, for the same work or for a work of equal value, equal remuneration between men and women“, Explains the text. And yet … In 2025, nothing has really changed. An INSEE study published in December 2024 confirmed that the wage differences are still there. For an identical working time, the average salary of employees is less than that of men of 14.2 %. Worse still, certain regions beat records. And guess what?
If women are generally less well paid than men everywhere in France, a region is sadly distinguished by the extent of the gap: the Grand Est. In this region, the average net salary of women is 16.2 % lower than that of men. A figure well above the European average, which amounts to 12 % according to a study of Eurostat dating from 2023. In other words, in the Grand Est, the wage inequalities in employment and work are not only persistent, but also more marked than in the majority of European Union countries. A sad record for a very French region.
And the painting is still darkening when you look more closely at certain professional sectors. Because, as mentioned above, the differences also depend on working time, the type of position or the field of activity. Thus, in the private sector, women’s employees are affected an average of 21.8 % less than men, still according to INSEE. A abyss difficult to justify, and which shows how equality of wage, professional equality and social justice remain a fight still very far from being won on the labor market.
