The gender pay gap among those holding top jobs in Hong Kong has widened over the past five years, according to official data.

Women in managerial roles earned HK$9,800 (US$1,248) less per month than men in the same role in the second quarter of this year, as per the Census and Statistics Department’s latest general household survey.

This gender pay gap of 19.6% increased from 15.8% last year and 6.98% five years ago, reports ABS CBN News.

In addition, among professionals, women earned 15.6% less than men according to these latest figures, surpassing the 11.1% gap registered in 2018.

Women in clerical roles earned 4.7% less than men, equating to HK$800, and the gender pay gap also increased with age, rising from 2.14% between those aged 15 – 24 and 28% for people aged between 45 and 54.

However, overall, the gender pay gap in Hong Kong reduced from 22.5% in 2018 to 13% in 2022. The data doesn’t include foreign workers, the majority of whom are women earning a minimum wage of HK$4,630 a month.

According to Alexa Chow Yee-ping, managing director of AMAC Human Resources Consultants, female workers fared worse as the economy suffered from the social unrest caused by anti-government protests in 2019 as well as the pandemic.

“Women are relatively less privileged than men. Lay-offs also target women disproportionately due to gender discrimination. For senior positions especially, some employers think it’s better to have men.”

Whereas Chinese University Economics Professor, Terence Chong Tai-leung said some women chose not to progress in their careers to have more time to care for the family, which was relatively rare among men: “Some would turn down a promotion after weighing the salary increase and responsibilities,” he said.

However, during the last academic year, women made up 53.6% of total undergraduate enrolment at Hong Kong’s publicly funded universities.

“We are having less gender bias. Women’s power has also lifted up,” Chow Yee-ping added. “For the next generation, the gender gap will not be repeated.”