SGI Europe welcomes the European Commission’s Gender Equality Strategy 2026-2030

SGI Europe welcomes the publication of the European Commission’s Gender Equality Strategy 2026–2030, which sets out a comprehensive framework to advance equality between women and men across the European Union. Building on the Women’s Rights Roadmap, the strategy addresses key priorities such as labour market participation, gender-based violence, work-life balance and equal representation in decision-making, while strengthening gender mainstreaming across EU policies.

SGI Europe welcomes the presentation of a comprehensive and action-oriented strategy. It recognises gender equality not only as a fundamental value of the European Union, but also as a key driver of social cohesion, economic resilience and competitiveness.

Valeria Ronzitti, Secretary General of SGI Europe, commented:

“Gender equality is both a fundamental European value and a key driver of social cohesion, economic resilience and competitiveness. Services of general interest have a central role to play in advancing this objective, both as major employers and as providers of the essential services that enable women’s full participation in society and the labour market.”

SGI Europe particularly welcomes the strategy’s focus on structural barriers affecting balanced participation of women and men in the labour market, including access to care services and persistent gender segregation across sectors and occupations.

SGI Europe also supports initiatives promoting greater gender balance across sectors, including efforts to attract more men to Health, Education, Administration and Literacy (HEAL) professions alongside ongoing initiatives encouraging women to pursue careers in STEM fields. Achieving a more balanced workforce is essential for both female- and male-dominated sectors, and SGI Europe members are actively working to address these imbalances through recruitment strategies, career development initiatives and actions promoting balanced leadership. Examples of such initiatives are highlighted in the SGI Europe Opinion on Gender Equality post-2025.

The strategy also confirms the Commission’s intention to support the effective implementation of the Pay Transparency Directive, aimed at strengthening the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal value. SGI Europe supports this objective but notes that important practical challenges remain. In particular, the requirement to identify “categories of workers” performing equal work or work of equal value requires a review of job classification systems and adaptations of payroll and HR processes. SGI Europe therefore regrets that calls from several stakeholders to consider a limited adjustment of the implementation timeline were not taken into account.

Finally, SGI Europe welcomes the emphasis on strengthening gender-disaggregated data and mobilising EU funding instruments to support gender equality policies. Reliable data and targeted funding will be important to monitor progress and support effective implementation across Europe.

SGI Europe remains committed to contributing to the implementation of the Gender Equality Strategy and to promoting gender equality both as an employer organisation and as a representative of enterprises delivering essential services across Europe.

(Photo: Press conference by Roxana Mînzatu, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, and Hadja Lahbib, European Commissioner, on the strategy for equality between men and women 2026-2030. Source: EC - Audiovisual Servic)