Women and men in the labour market: equal rights, different stories
The debate on gender equity at work is often polarised.
But what happens when we look at the data without ideological assumptions?
In the People & Work 2026 report, we analysed the responses of 1,519 people – women and men – who applied to AxL Spa, an Employment Agency, from all over Italy between October and November 2025.
What emerges is not a gap in skills.
It is a gap in experience, perception and opportunity.
Diversity & Inclusion: different priority, different awareness
73.4% of women consider it very important for an organisation to be committed to Diversity & Inclusion topics, compared with 61.8% of men. This is the largest gap in the entire analysis.
This difference does not point to “higher values‑driven sensitivity”, but to a different exposure to risk.
Those who are more likely to face systemic barriers attach greater importance to the policies that can reduce them.
D&I is not perceived as a reputational lever.
For many women, it is a condition of fairness.
Invisible work: balance does not start at the office
56.3% of women say they handle household tasks mainly on their own.
Men, on the other hand, state that they share them equally with their partner (46.8%).
Work–life balance, therefore, does not start in the company.
It starts with how family responsibilities are distributed.
If the domestic load is unbalanced, professional opportunities become unbalanced too – not because of a lack of ambition, but because people have different amounts of time, energy and flexibility available.
Perceived obstacles: labour market or gender?
37.9% of women believe that their gender has negatively affected their career. Among men, this figure is lower (30.5%).
When we look at the obstacles people report, a clear difference appears:
women cite stereotypes and discrimination among the main barriers, while men primarily point to market‑ or skills‑related factors.
This is not a distorted perception.
It reflects an awareness of operating in a system that does not offer the same starting conditions.
Career aspirations: ambition or realism?
51.9% of men say they “definitely” want to advance their career, compared with 44.1% of women.
Taken in isolation, this might suggest a gap in ambition.
Placed in context, it tells a different story.
If a significant share of women shoulder domestic responsibilities alone and perceive more structural barriers, career aspirations cannot be read only in terms of willingness – they must also be read in terms of sustainability.
Labour markets tend to reward those who can pursue career progression without major interruptions. Not everyone starts from the same place.
Artificial intelligence: innovation and trust
Scepticism about the use of artificial intelligence in recruitment processes is high for both genders, but more pronounced among women.
The concern is not about technology itself.
It is about the data on which it is built.
Algorithms trained on historical data tend to replicate historical patterns.
If past data show a predominance of men in leadership roles, there is a real risk that automation will reinforce those patterns.
This is not resistance to change.
It is a demand for safeguards.
The point is not just numerical parity. It is creating truly equal conditions.
Another finding strengthens this interpretation: in the sample analysed, women are on average more educated than men (41.2% versus 36.2% with a Master’s degree).
The issue is not preparation.
It is not competence.
It is context.
The organisations that will truly move forward in the coming years will not be those that simply “hire more women”.
They will be those that build environments where gender does not shape opportunities, ambitions or perceptions of fairness.
The strategic question is no longer:
“How can we increase female representation?” but rather:
“How can we design systems where competence and gender are not correlated?”
The transformation of work also depends on this.