The recent preview of the CNEL-Istat report on female employment, titled “Il lavoro delle donne tra ostacoli e opporunità”(Women’s Work Between Obstacles and Opportunities”), paints a far from encouraging picture. Although women’s labor is recognized as an essential component for economic and social development, women in Italy continue to face pervasive and systemic obstacles in accessing the labor market, remaining employed, advancing in their careers, and balancing work and personal life. The country still displays the lowest female employment rate in the EU.

Slow and insufficient employment growth in the face of deep gaps

Despite a positive trend in the labor market in the first half of 2024, with increased employment and decreased female unemployment and inactivity, this numerical growth is seriously overshadowed and nearly irrelevant when compared to the persistent and massive gap with the rest of the European Union. In the third quarter of 2024, the female employment rate in Italy was a full 12.6 percentage points lower than the EU average—the lowest among all twenty-seven member states. The gender gap in employment rate is nearly double the EU average (17.4 points vs. 9.1 points), the highest value among European countries.

Even more concerning are the significant territorial disparities: in Southern Italy, the female employment rate is just over one-third of that in the North and Center. Additionally, 71.3% of the increase in the number of employed women is driven by women over 50, indicating that the growth is not addressing the challenges of female youth employment.

Work vulnerability: a condition imposed, not chosen

The report highlights a shocking higher work vulnerability among women. While about seven out of ten employed men enjoy standard employment (permanent employees or self-employed with employees), only just over half of employed women (53.9%) fall into this category. Nearly a quarter of working women—about 2.5 million—experience some form of vulnerability, compared to 13.8% of men. The main driver of this gap is involuntary part-time work, which affects an astonishing 8.6% of women compared to just 2.5% of men.

Nearly a third of working women are in part-time roles, a percentage that rises to 41% among working mothers aged 25–34. In over 50% of cases, mothers in part-time work cite the need to balance family and work responsibilities as the main reason. A significant proportion (42.1%) work part-time because they could not find full-time work. Work vulnerability is more common among young women, those in Southern Italy, women with low education levels, and foreign nationals.

Motherhood and family burden: the “child penalty” that destroys careers

The impact of motherhood on women’s careers in Italy is dramatic and persistent. Mothers in couples have a significantly lower employment rate compared to single women and to all men, whether single or fathers in couples. In 2023, the employment rate of mothers in couples (aged 15–64) stood at 57.2%, almost 30 percentage points lower than that of fathers in couples (86.3%). This “child penalty” not only drastically reduces the likelihood of finding a job after childbirth, but it also has lasting effects, contributing significantly to the gender employment gap. Eliminating maternity-related penalties could, by 2040, increase the female employment rate by 6.5 percentage points—only 38% of the current gap. 

The family burden causes many women to completely withdraw from the workforce, especially those with preschool-age children. Among non-working women, over 7.8 million are inactive (63.5% of all inactive people aged 15–64), with the largest group being mothers in couples (38.6%). Most inactive mothers with children do not seek work due to family responsibilities (62.2%), a reason cited by only 4.8% of fathers. These figures reflect the patriarchal structure of the Italian family, where women’s unpaid domestic and caregiving labor hinders their emancipation. Italy ranks third in Europe for the share of male single-earner couples (25.2% vs. the EU average of 16.1%), a model most common among couples with children.

The chronic lack of early childhood services, especially nurseries and pre-kindergarten classes, makes returning to work even harder. Availability is scarce—especially in Southern Italy—while family demand is rising, leading to waitlists and overwhelmed facilities. Additionally, fathers in Italy make extremely limited use of parental leave, partly due to a system that is less generous than those in other European countries.

The accompanying chart shows a comparison of the average female employment rate (ages 20–49) according to Eurostat data. (Source:https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/cache/metadata/en/lfst_hh_esms.htm) 

Education and careers: the unbreakable glass ceiling

Women in Italy are, on average, more educated than men, yet this greater investment in education does not translate into a labor market advantage. Labor market return indicators are generally worse for women, and Italy continues to show a significant female employment disadvantage at all education levels compared to the rest of Europe.

From the early stages of education, girls tend to choose university majors linked to lower-paying, more humanistic professions, contributing to the wage gap from their first job. Although women made up a majority of new university enrollees (55.5% in 2022/2023), only 20.3% enrolled in STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). Female representation is particularly low in Computer Science (15.1% women) and Engineering (just over 24%). Although Italy surpasses the EU in overall female STEM enrollment, this is mainly due to higher numbers in natural sciences, mathematics, and statistics—not in key fields like computer science and engineering.

One reason for this educational channeling is the early societal pressure that discourages girls from pursuing scientific fields, which are stereotypically perceived as male. The phenomenon of horizontal segregation persists and has even worsened in recent years. About half of all female employment is concentrated in just 21 professions (e.g., secretaries, sales clerks, caregivers, nurses, cleaners), compared to 53 professions for men. This concentration in lower-status or less career-advancing jobs forms a significant barrier.

The glass ceiling remains unbroken. Women are still underrepresented in leadership positions, both in politics and in the public and private sectors. Although the share of women on the boards of publicly traded companies has grown thanks to legislative intervention (43.1% in 2023), the percentage of female CEOs is only 2.9% in Italy, compared to the EU average of 7.8%. Only 28.8% of active businesses in 2022 were run by women, and these tend to be smaller and employ fewer people.

Women’s average wages remain significantly lower than those of men, with a gap of over €6,000 annually, largely due to the higher incidence of part-time work among women. Two out of three women experienced at least one year of low annual pay between 2015 and 2022, and nearly one in three earned low hourly wages.

Policy implications: the urgent need for deep structural reform

Handling the deep gender imbalances in the Italian labor market requires more than minor adjustments: it demands a comprehensive structural approach, supported by a clear and resolute political and societal will. One of the most urgent priorities is to dismantle cultural barriers that still influence girls’ educational choices, steering them toward less remunerative and traditionally “feminine” fields. A profound shift in societal narratives is needed—one that promotes diverse role models and challenges the implicit stereotypes embedded in family, school, and workplace expectations. At the same time, strengthening family support policies is essential. Services for early childhood, such as nurseries and pre-kindergarten classes, remain limited, especially in Southern Italy, heavily penalising female employment. Parental leave also needs a thorough overhaul: only broader and incentivised use by fathers can help rebalance caregiving responsibilities, still disproportionately shouldered by women. Equally urgent is the need to rethink the tax and welfare system, which often penalises female work, particularly when women are second earners. A fiscal rebalancing is needed to encourage female participation in the workforce without sacrificing redistributive goals. Another key area is working conditions: creating more flexible, genuinely family-friendly work environments and increasing transparency on gender pay gaps are critical steps to strengthening women’s bargaining power and supporting their professional growth. Finally, the climb toward top positions remains hindered by a persistent glass ceiling. To ensure a stronger female presence in middle and senior management, corrective measures such as quotas may be necessary—measures capable of unlocking opportunities that are currently blocked.

Addressing these disparities is not only an ethical imperative—it is also a development strategy. The Bank of Italy estimates that a 10% increase in women’s participation in the labor market—enough to align with the European average—would lead to an equivalent increase in GDP in the long term. Ignoring these inequalities means not only perpetuating a historical injustice but also forsaking an economic and social potential that Italy can no longer afford to waste.

Elisa Paggetti

References:

Bertocchi, G., & Boeri, T. (2024, April 26). Tackling gender gaps in the Italian labour market: Evidence and policy implications. CEPR VoxEU.

CNEL. (2025). Rapporto sul mercato del lavoro 2025. Consiglio Nazionale dell’Economia e del Lavoro.

Conflavoro PMI. (2025, March 12). CNEL 2025: Occupazione, Sud e donne i nodi principali del mercato del lavoro italiano.

Doppia Difesa. (2023, November 30). Lavoro delle donne: il Rapporto Istat-Cnel fotografa il gender gap nel mercato del lavoro italiano.

ISTAT & CNEL. (2025, March). Rapporto sul lavoro 2024: Donne e mercato del lavoro. Istituto Nazionale di Statistica.