Women earn at least a quarter less than men across all economic sectors, according to official figures released yesterday.

On average, women earn 84c for every one euro men earn.

The Labour Force Survey published by the National Statistics Office showed that a woman’s average gross annual salary stood at €14,000 while that of a man stood at just under €17,000.

The gross annual salary refers to the basic salary only and excludes extra payments such as overtime, bonuses and allowances.

The figures cover the first three months of the year.

Women working in industry are worse off. They earn 77c for every euro earned by men. Women who work in the financial and real estate sectors are marginally better – they earn 85c for every euro earned by their male counterparts.

The survey also showed that employment increased by almost two percentage points in March when compared to the same period a year before.

The highest employment rate was recorded among people aged 25 to 54, which varied from 55 per cent among women to 89 per cent among men.

Out of every 100 people aged 15 to 64, 59 were employed. Unemployment stood at six per cent.

ksansone@timesofmalta.com