Salary gap persists, fewer women take up executive roles, says study

Study finds women earn up to 30% less than men and hold 17% of executive roles

The world remains deeply unequal when it comes to gender parity. Women earn 25–30 per cent less than their male counterparts for similar roles, with the gap widening to as much as 28 per cent in leadership positions. 

In Corporate India, women account for about 31 per cent of entry-level roles, but their presence drops sharply to 17 per cent at the executive level and 20 per cent on company boards, largely due to mandatory requirements. This points to a systemic exclusion from decision-making roles and economic power, according to Her Path, Her Power, a study by TeamLease in collaboration with the India Employer Forum and GAN Global, released on Thursday. 

Even as women’s educational qualifications rise, they continue to be funnelled into lower-paying jobs. For instance, while the number of women graduating with MBBS degrees is increasing, only 17 per cent go on to become practising allopathic doctors. 

The report also underscores a blunt reality: education alone does not guarantee employability for women. India’s challenge is not just to educate women but to ensure their skills match market demand. 

The gross enrolment ratio of women in higher education stands at 28 per cent, with enrolment skewed towards arts, sciences, and healthcare. Women participation in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) and engineering streams remains far lower. 

India produces an estimated 12–15 million women graduates each year, yet converting academic achievement into employability remains a hurdle. Women’s employability fell to 48 per cent in 2025 from 50.9 per cent in 2024, showing that despite higher education levels, they are falling behind men in securing job-ready placements. 

Employability in core engineering remains especially low at 22 per cent, reflecting gaps in technical training, confidence-building, and industry exposure, the report says. In information technology and software, 36 per cent of women are considered employable; in banking, financial services, and insurance, 40 per cent; and in healthcare, 55-60 per cent, aided by the structured and regulated nature of allied health training. 

The one bright spot: the pool of employable women talent is expected to grow by 46 per cent from 2021, reaching 2.01 million by 2027, up from 1.38 million. Even so, this growth falls short of industry demand. Total talent requirements are projected to reach 3.82 million by 2027, leaving a widening gap of 1.81 million employable workers.