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Women's legal equality: access to employment
What this indicator measures
This score from 0 to 100 looks at whether the law allows women to get a job like men, prohibits discrimination in hiring and at work, and allows requests for flexible work. Data from the 2026 edition of “Women, Business and the Law”, which describes the written laws in force on 1 October 2025 (not their actual application or uncodified customs).
How to read this?
The closer the score is to 100, the more of the rules assessed are written into law.
Ranking : ranked from highest to lowest
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186countries with data
100 /100maximum · Argentina
66.8 /100median
0 /100minimum · Sudan
2025data year(s)
In brief
Women's legal equality: access to employment: across 186 countries and territories, values range from 0 /100 (Sudan) to 100 /100 (Argentina), with a world median of 66.8 /100. Data: 2025. The top 10% of countries exceed 100 /100, while the bottom 10% stay below 25 /100. By continent, the median is highest in Europe (100 /100) and lowest in Africa (50 /100).
Median by continent
- Europe 100 /100 (40)
- South America 75 /100 (12)
- North America 66.8 /100 (23)
- Asia 62.5 /100 (45)
- Oceania 58.4 /100 (12)
- Africa 50 /100 (51)
Why this indicator matters
Access to employment depends in part on what the law allows. This score compares the written rules on hiring, non-discrimination and flexible work, to see where the legal framework is most egalitarian.
What makes this indicator vary
The differences come from the history of labour law, reforms in favour of equality, the international conventions ratified and the weight of traditions in family and labour law.
Reading precautions
The score measures written laws, not their application, nor actual inequalities in pay or access to employment. It covers only the points chosen by the WBL method and does not take uncodified customs into account.
Full ranking
ranked from highest to lowest
| Rank | Country | Value | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1er | 🇦🇷 Argentina | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇦🇺 Australia | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇦🇹 Austria | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇧🇪 Belgium | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇧🇬 Bulgaria | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇧🇷 Brazil | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇨🇱 Chile | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇨🇾 Cyprus | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇨🇿 Czechia | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇪🇸 Spain | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇫🇮 Finland | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇫🇷 France | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇬🇷 Greece | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇭🇺 Hungary | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇮🇪 Ireland | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇮🇹 Italy | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇯🇵 Japan | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇱🇺 Luxembourg | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇱🇻 Latvia | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇲🇩 Moldova | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇲🇺 Mauritius | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇳🇴 Norway | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇵🇹 Portugal | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇷🇴 Romania | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇷🇺 Russia | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇸🇰 Slovakia | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇸🇮 Slovenia | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇹🇷 Türkiye | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇺🇦 Ukraine | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇺🇸 United States | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 1er | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | 100 /100 | 2025 |
| 34e | 🇪🇪 Estonia | 91.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 34e | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | 91.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 34e | 🇭🇳 Honduras | 91.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 34e | 🇲🇹 Malta | 91.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 34e | 🇵🇪 Peru | 91.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 34e | 🇵🇷 Puerto Rico | 91.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 34e | 🇸🇪 Sweden | 91.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 34e | 🇺🇿 Uzbekistan | 91.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 42e | 🇦🇱 Albania | 87.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 42e | 🇦🇲 Armenia | 87.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 42e | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | 87.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 42e | 🇭🇷 Croatia | 87.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 42e | 🇱🇹 Lithuania | 87.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 42e | 🇲🇽 Mexico | 87.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 42e | 🇲🇪 Montenegro | 87.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 42e | 🇷🇸 Serbia | 87.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 42e | 🇸🇹 São Tomé & Príncipe | 87.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 42e | 🇹🇯 Tajikistan | 87.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 52e | 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan | 83.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 52e | 🇵🇱 Poland | 83.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 54e | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | 79.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 54e | 🇩🇪 Germany | 79.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 54e | 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic | 79.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 54e | 🇲🇬 Madagascar | 79.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 54e | 🇲🇰 North Macedonia | 79.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 54e | 🇵🇭 Philippines | 79.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 54e | 🇹🇬 Togo | 79.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇦🇿 Azerbaijan | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇧🇦 Bosnia & Herzegovina | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇧🇾 Belarus | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇧🇧 Barbados | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇨🇦 Canada | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇨🇴 Colombia | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇩🇰 Denmark | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇫🇯 Fiji | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇬🇩 Grenada | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇬🇾 Guyana | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇰🇮 Kiribati | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇰🇷 South Korea | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇱🇧 Lebanon | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇱🇷 Liberia | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇱🇨 St. Lucia | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇲🇻 Maldives | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇳🇮 Nicaragua | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇸🇲 San Marino | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇸🇷 Suriname | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇹🇭 Thailand | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇺🇾 Uruguay | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 61e | 🇿🇦 South Africa | 75 /100 | 2025 |
| 85e | 🇧🇯 Benin | 70.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 85e | 🇨🇮 Côte d’Ivoire | 70.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 85e | 🇮🇸 Iceland | 70.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 85e | 🇱🇦 Laos | 70.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇧🇸 Bahamas | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇨🇭 Switzerland | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇨🇳 China | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇨🇩 Congo - Kinshasa | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇬🇪 Georgia | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇭🇰 Hong Kong SAR China | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇮🇶 Iraq | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇮🇱 Israel | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇲🇭 Marshall Islands | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇲🇼 Malawi | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇳🇦 Namibia | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇸🇳 Senegal | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇸🇱 Sierra Leone | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇹🇱 Timor-Leste | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇻🇪 Venezuela | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇼🇸 Samoa | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 89e | 🇿🇲 Zambia | 66.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 108e | 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates | 62.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 108e | 🇧🇮 Burundi | 62.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 108e | 🇨🇻 Cape Verde | 62.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 108e | 🇬🇦 Gabon | 62.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 108e | 🇭🇹 Haiti | 62.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 108e | 🇲🇳 Mongolia | 62.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 108e | 🇲🇿 Mozambique | 62.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 108e | 🇵🇦 Panama | 62.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 108e | 🇵🇾 Paraguay | 62.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 108e | 🇸🇻 El Salvador | 62.5 /100 | 2025 |
| 118e | 🇦🇬 Antigua & Barbuda | 58.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 118e | 🇧🇹 Bhutan | 58.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 118e | 🇩🇯 Djibouti | 58.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 118e | 🇬🇭 Ghana | 58.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 118e | 🇬🇳 Guinea | 58.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 118e | 🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau | 58.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 118e | 🇲🇦 Morocco | 58.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 118e | 🇸🇴 Somalia | 58.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 118e | 🇸🇨 Seychelles | 58.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 118e | 🇹🇹 Trinidad & Tobago | 58.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇦🇴 Angola | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇧🇫 Burkina Faso | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇨🇫 Central African Republic | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇪🇬 Egypt | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇪🇷 Eritrea | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇪🇹 Ethiopia | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇬🇲 Gambia | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇮🇳 India | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇯🇴 Jordan | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇰🇪 Kenya | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇰🇭 Cambodia | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇱🇾 Libya | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇱🇸 Lesotho | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇲🇱 Mali | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇳🇵 Nepal | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇵🇰 Pakistan | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇷🇼 Rwanda | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇺🇬 Uganda | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 128e | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | 50 /100 | 2025 |
| 150e | 🇬🇹 Guatemala | 41.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 150e | 🇰🇼 Kuwait | 41.8 /100 | 2025 |
| 152e | 🇳🇪 Niger | 33.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 152e | 🇸🇾 Syria | 33.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 152e | 🇹🇩 Chad | 33.3 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇧🇩 Bangladesh | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇧🇭 Bahrain | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇧🇿 Belize | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇧🇳 Brunei | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇧🇼 Botswana | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇨🇲 Cameroon | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇨🇬 Congo - Brazzaville | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇰🇲 Comoros | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇩🇲 Dominica | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇩🇿 Algeria | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇫🇲 Micronesia | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇯🇲 Jamaica | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇰🇳 St. Kitts & Nevis | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇲🇲 Myanmar (Burma) | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇲🇷 Mauritania | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇳🇬 Nigeria | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇴🇲 Oman | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇵🇼 Palau | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇸🇬 Singapore | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇸🇧 Solomon Islands | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇸🇿 Eswatini | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇹🇴 Tonga | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇹🇳 Tunisia | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇻🇨 St. Vincent & Grenadines | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇻🇺 Vanuatu | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 155e | 🇾🇪 Yemen | 25 /100 | 2025 |
| 183e | 🇦🇫 Afghanistan | 0 /100 | 2025 |
| 183e | 🇮🇷 Iran | 0 /100 | 2025 |
| 183e | 🇶🇦 Qatar | 0 /100 | 2025 |
| 183e | 🇸🇩 Sudan | 0 /100 | 2025 |
Frequently asked questions
Which country has the highest value for "Women's legal equality: access to employment"?
The highest value is in Argentina, at 100 /100 (2025).
Which country has the lowest value for "Women's legal equality: access to employment"?
The lowest value is in Sudan, at 0 /100 (2025).
What is the world median value of "Women's legal equality: access to employment"?
The world median is 66.8 /100, calculated across 186 countries: half of the countries are above it, the other half below.
What is the value of "Women's legal equality: access to employment" for France?
France scores 100 /100 (2025), ranking 1 out of 186 countries (ranked from highest to lowest).
Where does the "Women's legal equality: access to employment" data come from?
It comes from Banque mondiale – Women, Business and the Law (WBL 2.0). Site last updated: November 8, 2026. Each country is shown with the year of its most recent value.
How should this score be read?
It runs from zero to one hundred. Each rule assessed that is present in the law adds points. A score close to one hundred means that almost all the rules tested are written into law.
What does the employment score cover?
It looks at whether women can get a job on the same terms as men, whether discrimination is prohibited and whether the law allows requests for flexible work.
Source and update
Source : Banque mondiale – Women, Business and the Law (WBL 2.0). Site last updated: November 8, 2026.
Indicators in the same category : Women's Legal Equality (Indices)
- Legal protection of women against violenceThis score from 0 to 100 looks at whether the law addresses domestic violence, sexual harassment, femicide and child marriage. Data from the 2026 edition of “Women, Business and the Law”, which describes the written laws in force on 1 October 2025 (not their actual enforcement or uncodified customs).
- Women's legal equality: property and inheritanceThis score from 0 to 100 looks at whether the law gives women the same rights as men over immovable property, inheritance (daughters and surviving wives) and the value of unpaid work in a divorce. Data from the 2026 edition of “Women, Business and the Law”, which describes written laws in force on 1 October 2025 (not their actual enforcement or uncodified customs).
- Women's legal equality: parental leave and pregnancyThis score from 0 to 100 looks at what the law provides around childbirth: paid maternity and paternity leave, coverage of benefits by the state and the prohibition of dismissing a pregnant worker. Data from the 2026 edition of “Women, Business and the Law”, which describes the written laws in force on 1 October 2025 (not their actual enforcement or uncodified customs).
- Women's legal equality: entrepreneurshipThis score from 0 to 100 looks at whether the law allows women to start a business on the same terms as men, prohibits discrimination in access to credit, provides for gender-sensitive public procurement and sets a quota of women on boards of directors. Data from the 2026 edition of “Women, Business and the Law”, which describes the written laws in force on 1 October 2025 (not their actual enforcement or uncodified customs).
- Women's legal equality: childcareThis score from 0 to 100 looks at whether the law organizes childcare services: nurseries, quality standards, support for families and for private providers. Data from the 2026 edition of “Women, Business and the Law”, which describes written laws in force on 1 October 2025 (not their actual enforcement or uncodified customs).
- Women's legal equality: overall indexThis index sums up, from 0 to 100, how far written laws give women the same economic rights as men. It is the average of ten thematic scores: safety, mobility, workplace, pay, marriage, parenthood, childcare, entrepreneurship, assets and pension. Data from the 2026 edition of "Women, Business and the Law", which describes written laws in force on 1 October 2025 (not their actual enforcement or uncodified customs).
- Women's legal equality: marriageThis score from 0 to 100 looks at whether the law gives women the same rights as men in marriage: being head of household, not having to obey one's husband, divorcing and remarrying. Data from the 2026 edition of "Women, Business and the Law", which describes written laws in force on 1 October 2025 (not their actual enforcement or uncodified customs).
- Women's legal equality: mobilityThis score from 0 to 100 looks at whether the law allows women to choose where to live, to leave the marital home, to travel abroad and to pass on their nationality to their spouse and children, just like men. Data from the 2026 edition of “Women, Business and the Law”, which describes the written laws in force on 1 October 2025 (not their actual application or uncodified customs).
- Women's legal equality: retirementThis score from 0 to 100 looks at whether the retirement age and the mandatory retirement age are the same for women and men, whether survivor's pensions are equal and whether periods spent caring for children count towards the pension. Data from the 2026 edition of “Women, Business and the Law”, which describes the written laws in force on 1 October 2025 (not their actual application or uncodified customs).
- Women's legal equality: pay and occupationsThis score from 0 to 100 looks at whether the law requires equal pay for work of equal value and whether women can work in the same jobs as men (night work, jobs considered dangerous, economic sectors). Data from the 2026 edition of "Women, Business and the Law", which describes written laws in force on 1 October 2025 (not their actual enforcement or uncodified customs).