Irish men earn 13.9% more than women here, according to new statistics from the European Commission.

This compares with an EU average gap of 16.7%.

The average hourly earnings gap between male and female is at its narrowest in Romania at 4.5% while in Estonia the margin is 28.1%. It is 20.9% in the UK

Ruth Deasy of the EU office in Dublin says Irish female employees fare better here compared to the UK.

“In spote of poor childcare systems, there’s still quite a positive picture in Ireland (compared with the EU average),” she said.