Instead of stating that it is a ‘competitive’ or ‘attractive’ salary, employers will have to specify concrete pay ranges for the advertised position. Until now, such a legal obligation did not exist.

Employers will be legally required to publish pay ranges in job advertisements as part of efforts to reduce the gender pay gap. Many employers currently avoid stating pay rates for jobs and instead use expressions such as ‘depending on experience’ or ‘competitive salary’, writes Business Post. It is not news that women receive lower pay than their male colleagues for the same position, so the new European Union transparency rules will seek to eliminate the gender pay gap.

An agreement on the new rules was reached between the European Parliament and the Council on the Directive on pay transparency measures back in December 2022, and the initiative was an important element of President Ursula von der Leyen’s political guidelines, according to the European Commission.

– It is high time that both women and men are empowered to claim their rights. We want to empower all workers and job seekers to ask for fair pay and to know and claim their rights. That is also why employers must become more transparent regarding their pay policies. No more double standards, no more excuses,” said the Vice-President for Values and Transparency, Vera Jourová.

Pay transparency measures:

Pay transparency for job seekers

That is, employers will have to provide information on the starting salary 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 salary history.

Right to information for employees

Employees will have the right to request from their employer data on individual pay levels and average pay by gender for categories of workers performing the same work or work of equal value. This right will exist for all employees, regardless of the size of the company.

Reporting on the gender pay gap

 Employers with at least 100 employees will have to publish data on the pay gap between female and male workers. In the first phase, employers with at least 250 employees will submit reports every year, and employers with between 150 and 249 employees every third year. From the fifth year after the Directive is transposed, employers with between 100 and 149 employees will also have to submit reports every third year.

Joint pay assessment

 If pay reporting reveals a gender pay gap of at least 5% and when the employer cannot justify the difference based on objective gender-neutral factors, employers will have to carry out a pay assessment, in cooperation with workers’ representatives.

According to the upcoming Directive, there are several ways to maintain a fair pay system, that is, equality. Thus, workers who have suffered discrimination based on gender may receive compensation, including full recovery of back pay and related bonuses. Also, if the employer has not fulfilled its transparency obligations, it is for the employer, not the worker, to prove that there was no pay discrimination.

In addition, sanctions will include fines, in order to prevent the pay gap between men and women. Member States should establish specific penalties for breaches of equal pay rules, including fines. And equality bodies and workers’ representatives may act in legal or administrative proceedings on behalf of workers.

The political agreement reached by the European Parliament and the Council is now subject to formal approval by the co-legislators. Following the agreement, the Directive will enter into force 20 days after publication in the Official Journal, and Member States will have to transpose the new elements of the Directive into national law within three years.

Source: lidermedia.hr