Employers must disclose wages

Currently, the average gender pay gap in the European Union is 12 percent. In the Czech Republic, it is as high as 18 percent. One of the main objectives of the new directive is thus to increase pay transparency. Employers in the EU will be obliged to publish information on starting salaries or salary ranges for individual positions. Job applicants will thus have access to information that will enable them to negotiate fair pay. The directive also prohibits employers from asking applicants about their previous pay, which should prevent the continuation of unequal treatment from previous employment.

Existing employees will also benefit from the directive, as they will now have the right to be informed of their individual pay level and of the average pay levels for categories of employees doing the same work or equal work, broken down by gender. Employers will also be obliged to provide employees with easy access to the criteria used to determine pay levels and pay progression.

Mandatory pay gap reporting

For employers with more than 100 employees, the directive introduces an obligation to report the gender pay gap. Employers with more than 250 employees will have to do so annually, smaller ones every three years. If the pay gap exceeds 5%, the employer will be obliged to take action to close it.

Compensation for discrimination

Discriminated-against employees may claim from their employer compensation of damage incurred because of the breach of the equal pay obligation. The amount of the compensation will depend on the financial situation the employee would have been in had there been no discrimination. The burden of proof will be on the employer who will have to prove that no discrimination in relation to pay had been present.

As the Czech bill is not yet available, we will have to wait for its final wording.