"Weren't You Hired Together?" Still, There's a Salary Gap of Tens of Millions... While Men Earn 109.17 Million Won, Women Earn 78.77 Million [2026 Gender Equality Index]

How Wide Is the Gender Gap in Pay and Tenure?

Top 100 Companies: Men Average 109.17 Million Won, Women 78.77 Million Won

Women's Salaries Reach 72% of Men's — Gap Narrowed 3 Percentage Points in 5 Years, But Disparities Persist

Poongs

Editor's NoteNumbers become powerful the moment they are made public. Since the disclosure of parental leave usage rates last year, the number of companies where the male usage rate remained in the single digits nearly halved in just one year. Behind this year’s total fertility rate, which is expected to reach the 0.9 range for the first time in seven years, are these types of changes in the workplace. Now in its 11th year, the Asia Gender Equality Index has analyzed data from 137 companies and voices from the field, highlighting both the progress and limitations of gender equality at work. Transparent data can change workplaces, and changes at work offer solutions to low birth rates. The Asia Gender Equality Index aims to be both a barometer and a driving force for this change.

An image created by ChatGPT depicting the reality that women in companies receive lower salaries than men. ChatGPT

Even when working at the same company, women receive slimmer pay envelopes than men. According to the Asia Gender Equality Index, only 2 out of the top 100 companies and just one financial institution had women earning more than 90% of men’s average annual salary. In both groups, there were companies where the figure was only about half.

Average years of service and annual salary are the most direct indicators of gender equality within companies. The longer you work, the more likely you are to be promoted and gain job experience, and these factors are reflected in your compensation. However, increasing female employment and narrowing gender gaps in years of service did not necessarily lead to the elimination of wage gaps.

According to the Asia Gender Equality Index, last year the average annual salary for men at the top 100 companies was 109.17 million won, while for women it was 78.77 million won. That means women earned about 72.2% as much as men. The “average company-level gender salary ratio,” a metric comparable over five years, was 71.9%, which is an improvement of 3.1 percentage points compared to 68.8% in 2021.

However, the pace of improvement remains slow. For the same group, the average salary ratio for 2024 was about 71.8%, meaning there was virtually no progress in the past year. Last year’s Asia Gender Equality Index also showed that, on average, women’s salaries were about 72% of men’s salaries.

The gap in years of service has also barely narrowed. The average ratio of women’s years of service to men’s at the top 100 companies was only 77.9%, up just 1.1 percentage points from 76.8% in 2021. Only 10 companies had women working longer than men on average.

SK hynix Top for Women’s Salaries... 159 Million Won

The company where women’s average annual salary was the highest was SK hynix at 159 million won. Samsung Electronics followed at 130 million won, NAVER at 126 million won, SK Innovation at 121 million won, and Samsung SDS at 120 million won. Hyundai Motor Company paid women 118 million won, Kia 116 million won, SK Telecom 115 million won, and HMM was also close to 115 million won.

Among the top 100 companies, there were 17—mainly semiconductor, IT, and automobile firms—where women’s average annual salary exceeded 100 million won. However, a high figure for women’s pay did not necessarily mean a smaller gender pay gap. At companies where men’s salaries were also high, the absolute gap between men and women’s earnings remained significant.

Ranking the companies by gender pay gap tells a different story. The company where women’s salaries were closest to men’s was Poongsan, where the average woman earned 97.1% as much as the average man—virtually no gap. S-1 Corporation followed at 92.6%.

Except for these two companies, no other company surpassed the 90% mark. Hyundai Motor Company came in at 89.4%, KT at 89.3%, Celltrion at 88.8%, Samsung Biologics at 87.6%, and Kia at 85.9%. It is notable that the companies with the smallest pay gap are in the defense and materials industries. This shows that a smaller number of female employees in certain sectors does not always translate into a wider gender pay gap.

Companies Where Women Earn Only Half as Much as Men... GS Global Lowest at 50.4%

On the other end, there were companies where the gap was nearly twofold. At 11 companies, women's salaries fell below 60% of men's. GS Global had the lowest women’s salary at just 50.4% of men's. Kolon Global was at 51.1%, Asiana Airlines at 53.3%, Doosan Enerbility at 54.8%, Lotte Wellfood at 55.1%, and Lotte Chilsung Beverage at 55.8%. Emart was at 56.5%, Korea Zinc at 57.6%, while Lotte Shopping, KG Steel, and Daesang were all around 58%.

Disparities appeared by industry as well. Among the top 100 companies, the average women's salary was 77.8% of men's in information and communications, which was relatively high; in manufacturing, it was 72.8%. In contrast, in construction it was 64.8%, and in wholesale/retail it was just 62.7%. Even in fields with a high proportion of female employees, the wage gap was not always small. For example, at Lotte Shopping, where women made up 66% of regular employees, women’s salary was only 57.9% of men’s.

There were also a number of companies that reduced their pay gap over five years. At HMM, the women’s salary ratio rose by about 29.9 percentage points, while at Kakao it improved by 25.6 percentage points. Korean Air, LX International, and POSCO Future M also posted double-digit improvements.

However, at the same time, 36 companies saw the women’s salary ratio decrease. This means that while the overall average improved, there are still numerous companies where the gender pay gap actually widened.

In Finance, Men and Women Stay Just as Long, Yet Women Earn 44.87 Million Won Less

The contradiction is starkest in finance. The average annual salary for women at 37 financial firms was 110.09 million won—about 31 million won higher than the top-100-company average. However, the average for men was 154.96 million won. Women's salaries were only 71% of men’s, making the gap even larger than in the broader corporate sector.

The highest absolute women's salary in finance was at Korea Investment & Securities, at about 161.3 million won. NH Investment & Securities provided around 154.49 million won, Mirae Asset Securities 145.08 million won, KB Securities and Samsung Securities both about 139 million won.

Yet in terms of gender salary ratios, Shinhan Card was the highest among financial firms at 92.3%. Mirae Asset Securities followed at 86.5%, Woori Bank at 83.6%, iM Bank at 81.8%, and Daishin Securities at 81.5%. Shinhan Card was the only financial company where women’s salaries surpassed 90% of men's.

At the lowest end, women at Meritz Securities earned just 50.1% of men’s salaries. At DB Insurance it was 52.4%, at Kiwoom Securities 56.7%, at Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance 58%, and at Meritz Fire & Marine Insurance 58.1%—all representing substantial gaps.

Although Meritz Securities ranked first for employment in this year’s Asia Gender Equality Index, scoring 25.25 points among 37 financial companies and with women making up 51.6% of regular staff—a 5.5 percentage point increase in five years—women’s average annual salary was just 130.74 million won, about half of men’s, whose average was 261.07 million won. This is a classic example showing a significant distance between “hiring women in large numbers” and “compensating them equally.”

The gap in years of service is even more striking. Among financial firms, women’s years of service averaged 99.4% of men's, meaning there was virtually no difference. Last year's survey also found women had worked 97.8% as long as men. And yet, women’s salaries last year were only 70.6% of men’s, and are around 71% this year. This makes it difficult to attribute the gender pay gap in finance to “women joining companies later” or “shorter tenures.”

However, these results alone cannot pinpoint the cause. Factors such as gender ratios by rank, representation in sales or administrative roles, the share of bonuses, and executive promotions can all play a role. In conclusion, the next challenge for gender equality is not just “how many were hired,” but “what positions they hold, how far they are promoted, and how much they are paid.”

These company-level disparities are linked to the overall structure of the South Korean labor market. Compared to other OECD member countries, Korea’s gender wage gap remains wide. According to a recent report, “2026 Gender Statistics in Korea” published by the Korean Women’s Development Institute, Korea’s gender wage gap was 29% in 2024, nearly three times the OECD average of 10.1%. The share of low-income female workers in Korea was 23.8% in 2024, 6.1 percentage points higher than the OECD average (16.9%). This proves that the domestic gender wage gap is closely intertwined with structural factors in the labor market, such as women’s concentration in low-wage jobs and differences in pay by industry and occupation. Kim Jongsook, President of the Korean Women’s Development Institute, stated, “The gender wage gap is not just about differences in pay. It’s about examining what jobs women and men have and what opportunities they are given in the labor market,” adding, “We need policy efforts to more closely analyze the causes of gender wage gaps and connect them to real improvements.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.