• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
MPWMost Powerful Women

It’ll Take 217 Years for Women To Achieve Equality in the Workplace

Claire Zillman
By
Claire Zillman
Claire Zillman
Editor, Leadership
Down Arrow Button Icon
Claire Zillman
By
Claire Zillman
Claire Zillman
Editor, Leadership
Down Arrow Button Icon
November 2, 2017, 12:59 PM ET

If the recent string of sexual harassment allegations against high-powered men is any indication, women have a long way to go before achieving equal treatment in the workplace. On Thursday, the World Economic Forum pegged a specific time frame to solving the problem, and ladies, it’s going to be a slog: 217 years.

The new WEF report on the global gender gap takes into account women’s economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, health and survival, and political empowerment as compared to men’s. It found that it’ll take exactly 100 years to close the gap across all four factors in the 106 nations included in the report since its inception—17 years longer than last year’s estimate.

But taking into account only women’s economic deficiency, it’ll take even longer—217 years. That’s because rather than shrinking, the economic gender gap—which considers women’s labor force participation, wage equality, and professional leadership—continues to widen. In fact, progress on this front reverted back to its 2008 level this year, after peaking in 2013.

Not a single country has fully closed its economic gender gap, though 13 have come close, narrowing it 80% or more, according to WEF. The small African nation of Burundi is the top performer by this measure, having closed 91% of its economic gender gap. Barbados, the Bahamas, and Benin are second (88%), third (87%), and fourth (86%) respectively. By comparison, the U.S. is ranked 19th, having narrowed its gap 78%.

Subscribe to The Broadsheet, Fortune’s newsletter on powerful women.

On average, nations had closed 58% of their economic gender gaps in 2017, down from 59% in both 2016 and 2015.

The report offers a few clues as to why the women’s economic disadvantage is getting worse. While global labor force participation is declining for both men and women, the dip has been especially steep for women. At the same time, earned income is on the rise for both sexes, but it’s been especially sharp for men, “suggesting that the growth in prosperity is not equitably distributed along gender lines,” the report says. Plus, women remain underrepresented in senior positions in the public sector and in business: This year, women accounted for just 22% of senior managerial positions.

Courtesy of WEF.

The report provides a major incentive to increase efforts on the gender equality front: There’s a ton of money on the line. Closing the economic participation gender gap 25% by 2025 could add some $5.3 trillion to the world GDP. The U.S. alone could see an extra $1.75 trillion by achieving economic gender parity. Those figures, the report says, suggest “the potential self-financing effects of additional public investment into closing global gender gaps.”

About the Author
Claire Zillman
By Claire ZillmanEditor, Leadership
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon

Claire Zillman is a senior editor at Fortune, overseeing leadership stories. 

See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in MPW

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in MPW

nicole
MPWWealth
Meet Goldman’s athlete whisperer: the woman who stands guard against $1 billion of fraud targeting sports fortunes
By Nick LichtenbergMay 10, 2026
10 hours ago
Young man working on laptop with headphones in modern coffeeshop
Future of Workskills gap
AI generated identical résumés for a man and a woman: Hers was more likely to be labeled ‘weak,’ while his got a 97% approval rating
By Eleanor PringleMay 10, 2026
11 hours ago
Fortune 500 Power Moves: Which executives gained and lost power this week
C-SuiteFortune 500 Power Moves
Fortune 500 Power Moves: Which executives gained and lost power this week
By Fortune EditorsMay 8, 2026
2 days ago
naomi
Commentarymental health
Naomi Osaka: the things I didn’t do to succeed
By Naomi OsakaMay 8, 2026
2 days ago
burke
ConferencesAthletic Gear
The CEO of Trek Bicycle reads 52 books a year, hates smartphones, and thinks Milton Friedman was wrong
By Nick LichtenbergMay 6, 2026
4 days ago
Aerie built a $2 billion brand by rejecting Victoria’s Secret’s old playbook. Now it wants to win the AI backlash
C-SuiteRetail
Aerie built a $2 billion brand by rejecting Victoria’s Secret’s old playbook. Now it wants to win the AI backlash
By Phil WahbaApril 30, 2026
11 days ago

Most Popular

'Employers are increasingly turning to degree and GPA' in hiring: Recruiters retreat from ‘talent is everywhere,’ double down on top colleges
Future of Work
'Employers are increasingly turning to degree and GPA' in hiring: Recruiters retreat from ‘talent is everywhere,’ double down on top colleges
By Jake AngeloMay 9, 2026
1 day ago
Ted Cruz says the quiet part out loud: Trump accounts are Social Security personal accounts as GOP senator reveals 'dirty little secret'
Politics
Ted Cruz says the quiet part out loud: Trump accounts are Social Security personal accounts as GOP senator reveals 'dirty little secret'
By Jason MaMay 9, 2026
1 day ago
‘This is the way’: Elon Musk endorses Warren Buffett’s famed 5-minute plan to fix the national debt
Economy
‘This is the way’: Elon Musk endorses Warren Buffett’s famed 5-minute plan to fix the national debt
By Jacqueline MunisMay 10, 2026
7 hours ago
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says Gen Z and millennials are using ChatGPT like a 'life advisor'—but college students might be one step ahead
Tech
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says Gen Z and millennials are using ChatGPT like a 'life advisor'—but college students might be one step ahead
By Sydney LakeMay 10, 2026
7 hours ago
Red flag test: former CEO explains why he rejects job candidates who say they can start right away
Success
Red flag test: former CEO explains why he rejects job candidates who say they can start right away
By Orianna Rosa RoyleMay 9, 2026
1 day ago
Trump thinks he's flying to Beijing with leverage. China spent 6 years making sure he doesn't have any
Commentary
Trump thinks he's flying to Beijing with leverage. China spent 6 years making sure he doesn't have any
By Steve H. HankeMay 10, 2026
9 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.