Gender equality is declining in the management positions of Spanish companies. The presence of women has fallen to 15.6% in 2024, one percentage point less than the previous year and three less than in 2021, when the quota was 18%. These are percentages that have never recovered from the levels prior to the financial crisis.
The data comes from an Icsa study prepared in collaboration with Eada from a sample that collects salary data from more than 80,000 individuals employed as employees in Spain, captured through direct surveys and technological platforms.
At the remuneration level, the study points out that the difference between male and female managers has reduced by one percentage point, now standing at 11%. If we talk about absolute figures, the current average remuneration of a manager is 93,030 euros gross per year while that of his female counterpart reaches 83,663 on average. According to the report, if the pace of reduction in the wage gap were maintained, Spanish female managers would still take 20 years to earn the same as men.
Among other issues, the study breaks down the presence of women in different positions of power. For example, in general management positions, the quota of women is only 9%, while in marketing, human resources and communication management it exceeds 30%.
The author of the report, Indry Canchila, explained together with researcher Aline Masuda, that “companies must redesign management positions to really improve work-life balance.” Positions that encourage presence and overtime, she has said, "contribute to inequality, because society continues to expect women to be primarily responsible for taking care of the family."
Far from parity, these data reflect, for the moment, the poor Spanish business culture in terms of equality and the limited effects of labor regulations, which force companies to apply an equality plan.
