Where women have the best chance in the workforce

It’s no longer the 1950s, but many have observed that women still struggle in the workforce to varying degrees across the world. While women earn almost 60% of university degrees in the US and Europe, they nevertheless represent less than half of the workforce in the same places.

Women make up almost exactly half the American workforce, although there remains a 10% higher rate of unemployment for females. However, a lack of statutory paid leave for mothers means 74% of parents here say they do not get enough time to spend with their children. Public spending on child care is relatively low in the US, at 0.5% of GDP versus 1.3% in France and 2.7% in Denmark.

According to information from Eurostat, the US does manage to keep up with Europe’s leading workforces. Here are some leading countries arranged by their employment rates for women, compared with their total employment rates:

1. Iceland, 79.5% (82.8% total)
2. Sweden, 77.2% (79.8% total)
3. UK, 69.4% (74.9% total)
4. France, 65.5% (69.5% total)
5. USA, 65.3% (70.9% total)
6. Japan, 64.5% (75.2% total)
7. Italy, 49.9% (59.8% total)
8. Turkey, 31.8% (53.4% total)

Meanwhile, Iceland, Finland and Norway were touted as the top countries for women to work in last year's Global Gender Gap Report.