Gender pay gap in Israel among the widest in the developed world, report finds

Israel’s gender pay gap has remained among the widest in the developed world, according to a new report.

The report, released this week by the Adva Center think tank and reported by the Kan public broadcaster, finds that as of 2022, the wage gap between men and women in Israel stood at 20.8 percent. That’s not much narrower than the figure from 2005, which was 21.9%, Kan reports.

The 2022 figure means Israel has the fourth-largest gender wage gap of any of the 38 members of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, a group of countries with developed economies. In that group, Israel’s wage gap is narrower than only those of South Korea, Japan and Estonia.

The report also found that higher education does not narrow the wage gap, as the figure is even higher for those with a college degree.

The report attributed the gap to women working so-called “pink collar” jobs such as teaching, while men predominate in higher-paying fields like finance or tech. Women also earn less because they are more likely to take on a greater share of responsibilities at home, such as childcare.