PwC Belgium survey highlights inequality between men and women in the labour market

 PwC Belgium also advocates a more inclusive workplace, as the survey shows that inequality between men and women in the labour market still greatly affects women’s careers.

A global study by professional services provider PwC brings new insights into the expectations of employees in the workplace. The survey, which polled over 53,000 employees in 46 countries around the world, also had 1,070 respondents in Belgium.

The survey focuses on the positive and negative expectations of employees in the labour market on topics such as skills, confidence in their employer and the working environment.

Generally speaking, Belgians are satisfied at work: 7 out of 10 respondents are happy with the job they do and feel they can be themselves at work. Nevertheless, there are a number of signs that the shortages on the labour market and the economic malaise are also reflected in the workplace. No fewer than one in three employees found the workload to be unmanageable over the past year.

Half of these cases were caused by a lack of resources such as personnel. However, more and more Belgians are also experiencing financial difficulties.

Almost 1 in 5 have difficulty making ends meet each month. 43% of Belgian respondents insufficient financial flexibility to save money, to pay for a holiday or pay for a little extra treat at the end of the month. 16% of the respondents combine several jobs at the same time, with 7 out of 10 doing so to earn more. At a global level we can also see this trend continuing and the financial condition of households deteriorating.

PwC also notes significant differences between men and women in the workplace in Belgium. Despite the fact that the gender pay gap in our country is decreasing each year, there is still an inequality between men and women on the labour market. This not only manifests itself in the positions held by women, but also in the way in which they perform their job and how they expect their job to evolve in the coming year.

The survey shows that women are still much less active in managerial roles or higher executive roles (18%) compared to men (29%). In addition, women in Belgium are twice as likely to work part-time as men. Because women are more often active in healthcare or education – where their physical presence at work is required – working from home is also less feasible for them.

One in four female respondents say that they are unable to carry out their job in the way they would like. The degree of willingness to change jobs in the coming year is almost the same between men and women. When it comes to a pay rise or promotion, however, women are noticeably less likely to request one. This is the case even though women are more likely to think that they are not remunerated properly for their efforts.

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