Equality and diversity

Denmark lags behind our Nordic neighbours when it comes to gender equality. Even though Danish women are among the most educated in the world, this rarely leads to leadership positions or equal pay.

How IDA works for gender equality

Gender equality is a benefit for society – this is what IDA fights for.

Maternity, employment terms and equal treatment

Read about your rights regarding maternity leave, employment terms, and equal treatment here.

Women start their careers with a pay gap

Newly qualified female engineers, IT specialists and scientologists receive a lower starting salary on average than their male colleagues.

The Agnes & Betzy award

Every year, we honour an IDA member who contributes to high professionalism and greater diversity in the STEM fields at our Agnes & Betzy award ceremony.

Diversity in Tech and Science (DITS)

DITS is an event that brings everyone with an interest in tech and science together for a celebration of diversity and inclusion in technology.

Gender equality and diversity in the workplace

It's been many years since women entered the labour market in Denmark. Although Denmark has been a pioneer in gender equality for many years, progress has stalled in recent years. Therefore, we have not yet reached the goal of gender equality in Denmark. This applies to areas such as

Pay
Parental leave
Management and leadership

Equal pay for equal work

Gender equality is very much about equal pay for equal work. Yet IDA's salary statistics show that, on average, men earn more than women. This is also the case among newly qualified men and women, where women generally receive a lower starting salary compared to their male colleagues. IDA works for equal pay between genders. For example, you can be supported as a member through personalised salary advice. You can also attend salary courses for women, where we encourage women to always use the salary level of a man in IDA's salary statistics as a starting point for salary negotiations. If you are a union representative, IDA can assist you in negotiations on equal pay.

Parental leave - also for fathers

Parental leave is also for men. Today, many women take almost all of their parental leave, which is the main barrier to their career and salary development. IDA therefore recommends the introduction of full pay during parental leave, as our members often cite this as a significant barrier to fathers taking a larger share of parental leave. Although the Equal Treatment Act ensures that both women and men are protected against discrimination based on gender, pregnancy and parental leave, some women are denied a pay rise due to their parental leave. Learn more about the rules for parental leave and your employment conditions and rights when you are expecting or on parental leave in IDA's FAQ.

Get answers to the most frequently asked questions about pregnancy, parental leave, equal treatment and employment conditions.

More women in leadership

Denmark is the Nordic country with the lowest proportion of female leaders, and prejudices about gender and leadership unfortunately still thrive. There is a need for more diversity in leadership and more female managers in Denmark. More female managers lead to happier employees and a better bottom line.

You can attend IDA's events and conferences that focus on gender equality and diversity in the labour market. For example, the Diversity in Tech and Science conference, which focuses on creating diversity and inclusion in science, technology and engineering, or the Leadership that Empowers conference, where you as a leader can get inspiration on how to create a future-proof, visionary and inclusive leadership style that benefits you, your employees and your organisation.