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2020 Worker’s Rights Index: Best & Worst Countries

Across the world, many developed countries have in recent years, revised the way in which they treat their workers. From general rights of working people to those of parents and minorities, we’ve looked who’s progressed the most.

2020 Worker's Rights Index: Best & Worst Countries

The Rights Of Women

The gender pay gap is an important and often discussed metric on which progressive nations can be compared. We’ve looked at both wages and the level of inclusion women have in both the boardroom and Parliament.

RankCountryGender Pay Gap %indexParliament & Boardroom Diversity Score /10
1Norway7.19.009
2Denmark5.79.387.9
3Belgium4.79.655.9
4Luxembourg3.410.004.9
5New Zealand7.88.817
6Slovenia59.575.3
7Greece4.59.704.3
8Sweden13.47.308.8
9Italy5.69.414.2
10France9.98.245.6
11Poland9.48.385.3
12Hungary9.48.384.9
13Iceland9.98.245.1
14Spain11.57.815.9
15Netherlands14.17.117.2
16Ireland10.68.055.1
17Lithuania12.57.545.9
18Finland16.56.467.9
19Slovak Republic13.97.166.1
20Australia14.37.056.3
21Switzerland14.86.926.3
22Turkey6.99.051.9
23Portugal14.37.055.8
24Germany15.56.736.3
25Austria15.76.686
26Canada18.26.006.6
27United Kingdom16.86.385.7
28United States18.16.036
29Czech Republic166.594.7
30Mexico16.56.464.7
31Israel19.35.705.8
32Latvia21.15.226.7
33Chile21.15.223.5
34Japan24.64.274.1
35Estonia28.33.275.9
36Korea36.71.004.4

Maternity & Parental Leave

Countries are growing more and more progressive when it comes to their approach to both maternal and parental leave. We’ve looked at legislation in OECDs as well as the proposition of wages that are paid during and after pregnancy.

Country or areaLength of Maternity Leave (in weeks)Percentage of wages paid in covered period (%)
Sweden6980
Norway52 80-100
United Kingdom5290
Czech Republic2860
Slovakia2855
Iceland2680
Ireland2680
Hungary2470
Italy2280
Portugal2180-100
Finland2170
Estonia20100
Australia18…
Chile18100
Denmark18…
Lithuania18100
Canada1755
Greece1750+
Austria16100
France16100
Latvia16100
Luxembourg16100
Netherlands16100
Poland16100
Spain16100
Turkey1667
Belgium1575-79.5
Slovenia15100
Germany14100
Israel14100
Japan1430
New Zealand14100
Switzerland1480
Republic of Korea13100
Mexico12100
United States of America12…

Notes

  • … means Not available
  • USA: There is no national program. Cash benefits may be provided at the state level.
  • Australia: A lump sum payment is paid for each child.

Wellbeing & Satisfaction

Life satisfaction among persons aged 15 and over, 2015 or last year available

CountryAverage life satisfaction score
Norway7.6
Denmark7.5
Iceland7.5
Switzerland7.5
Finland7.4
Israel7.4
Australia7.3
Canada7.3
Netherlands7.3
New Zealand7.3
Sweden7.3
United States7.2
Austria7.1
Germany7
Belgium6.9
Chile6.8
Ireland6.8
Luxembourg6.7
Czech Republic6.5
United Kingdom6.5
France6.4
Spain6.4
Mexico6.2
Lithuania6.1
Slovak Republic6.1
Poland6
Japan5.9
Italy5.8
Korea5.8
Latvia5.7
Slovenia5.7
Estonia5.6
Greece5.6
Turkey5.6
Hungary5.3
Portugal5.1

Annual Working Hours

CountryWork hours per persons engaged (hours per person engaged)
Germany1371
Netherlands1420
Norway1427
Denmark1438
France1473
Luxembourg1502
Slovenia1561
Switzerland1568
Belgium1575
Sweden1609
Austria1629
Finland1643
United Kingdom1675
Canada1688
Spain1689
Japan1729
Italy1734
New Zealand1762
Slovakia1763
United States1765
Czech Republic1771
Australia1803
Ireland1821
Turkey1832
Lithuania1834
Portugal1857
Estonia1859
Hungary1860
Iceland1864
Israel1880
Latvia1938
Chile1990
Poland2039
Greece2042
South Korea2124
Mexico2137

Violation of Rights Rankings

Key:

  • 1 = Sporadic violation of rights
  • 2 = Repeated violation of rights
  • 3 = Regular violation of rights
  • 4 = Systematic violation of rights
  • 5 = No guarantee of rights
  • 5+ = No guarantee of rights due to breakdown of the law
CountryRanking
Austria1
Belgium1
Denmark1
Finland1
Germany1
Iceland1
Ireland1
Italy1
Netherlands1
Norway1
Slovak Republic1
Sweden1
Canada2
Czech Republic2
Estonia2
France2
Israel (a)2
Japan2
Latvia2
Lithuania2
New Zealand2
Portugal2
Switzerland2
Australia3
Chile3
Hungary3
Poland3
Spain3
United Kingdom3
United States4
Greece5
Korea5
Mexico5
Turkey5

Additional Resources:

  • WordPress Hosting
  • Business Bank Accounts
  • Free Business Banking
  • Business Credit Cards
  • Merchant Cash Advance
  • Business Electricity Rates
  • UK Unsecured Business Loans
  • UK Commercial Mortgages

Sources:

  • http://data.un.org/DocumentData.aspx?id=344
  • http://www.oecd.org/els/family/database.htm
  • https://ourworldindata.org/working-hours#annual-working-hours-since-1950
  • https://www.ituc-csi.org/IMG/pdf/ituc-global-rights-index-2018-en-final-2.pdf
  • http://www.oecd.org/els/family/database.htm
  • https://qz.com/302264/the-best-places-in-the-world-to-work-in-7-charts/
  • https://www.thebalancecareers.com/best-countries-to-work-in-4134402
  • http://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/topics/work-life-balance/

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