Cyprus pensions gender inequality among highest in EU

Female pensioners in Cyprus received a pension that was 38.2 per cent lower than male pensioners in 2018, much higher than the EU average of a 30 per cent pension gap.

According to data released on Friday by Eurostat, though the gender gap in pensions has been steadily declining over time, falling by 4 per cent since 2010, a significant difference still remains.

The largest difference was observed in Luxembourg, where women aged over 65 received a pension 43 per cent lower than men. Luxembourg was closely followed by Malta (42 per cent), the Netherlands (40 per cent), Austria (39 per cent), Cyprus (38 per cent) and Germany (37 per cent).

The smallest differences in pension income between women and men were in Estonia (1 per cent), Denmark (7 per cent), Slovakia (8 per cent), Czechia (13 per cent) and Hungary (16 per cent).

Compared to 2010, the pension gender gap has decreased in the majority of EU Member States. The most noticeable decreases were recorded in Greece (from 37 per cent in 2010 to 25 per cent in 2018), Denmark (-11 pp), Belgium and Slovenia (both -10 pp) as well as in France (-9 pp).

But the gap has also widened with time in seven EU Member States, with Malta showing the most significant increase, as from a 22 per cent pension gender gap in 2010, it skyrocketed to 42 per cent in 2018.