BEERG Newsletter – EU: Gender pay transparency

On 4 March 2021, the European Commission presented a proposal on pay transparency which aims to ensure that women and men in the EU receive equal pay for equal work. The legislative proposal focuses on two core elements of equal pay (i) measures to ensure pay transparency for workers and employers; and (ii) access to justice for those experiencing pay discrimination.

Pay transparency measures:

• Pay transparency for job-seekers – Employers will have to provide information about the initial pay level, or its range in the job vacancy notice, or before the job interview. Employers will not be allowed to ask prospective workers about their pay history.
• Right to information for employees – Workers will have the right to request information from their employer on their individual pay level and on the average pay levels, broken down by sex, for categories of workers doing the same work or work of equal value.
• Reporting on gender pay gap – Employers with at least 250 employees must publish information on the pay gap between female and male workers in their organisation. For internal purposes, they should also provide information on the pay gap between female and male employees by categories of workers doing the same work or work of equal value.
• Joint pay assessment – Where pay reporting reveals a gender pay gap of at least 5 % and when the employer cannot justify the gap on objective gender-neutral factors, employers will have to carry out a pay assessment, in cooperation with workers' representatives.

Access to justice:

• Compensation for workers – workers who suffered gender pay discrimination can get compensation, including full recovery of back pay and related bonuses or payments in kind.
• Burden of proof on employer – it will be by default for the employer, not the worker, to prove that there was no discrimination in relation to pay.
• Sanctions to include fines – Member States should establish specific penalties for infringements of the equal pay rule, including a minimum level of fines
• Equality bodies and workers' representatives may act in legal or administrative proceedings on behalf of workers as well as lead on collective claims on equal pay.

It now falls to the Council of Ministers and to the European Parliament to consider the Commission’s legislative proposals. Given the usual legislative timetable, it could be several years before any new law becomes operative at national level.

From BEERG Newsletter Issue #11 – March 25, 2021