In a resolution passed by the European Parliament yesterday, employers may face sanctions and exclusion from European Funding if they're found to be paying women less than men for performing the same role.
The gender pay gap
According to research published in today's Irish Times, the latest figures show that women across the EU earn on average 16.4 per cent less than men. The gender pay gap varies between 4.4 per cent and 27.6 per cent in individual member states.
The terms of the resolution which was passed yesterday call for companies to publish their salary scales and other benefits and to carry out regular pay audits. This information should be readily accessible by employees, trade unions and equality authorities, according to reports.
The resolution also calls for member states to reinforce existing legislation by using sanctions such as penalties, which must include payment of compensation to the victim; fines in cases where information on salary structures is not provided to labour inspectorates or equality bodies; disqualification from EU subsidies and public procurement procedures; and the public identification of employers who breach the principle of equal pay for work of equal value.
What relevant legislation exists in Ireland?
In Ireland, the existing legislation is The Employment Equality Act 1998, 2004 (the Act) which was originally signed into law in October 1999 and amended in 2004. The primary principles of the Equality legislation are to provide:
- Identical treatment for workers, whereby equals should be treated equally.
- Special treatment for some workers in order to achieve fairness or equity, an example of this being Maternity Leave as it is a special provision for female employees in order to ensure they are not treated unequally or singled out by becoming pregnant.
- Positive measures that provide special treatment in certain circumstances.
As a background, the Act aims to provide equal treatment for all persons with regards to access to employment, remuneration and also whilst in employment, with regards to conditions of employment, training or experience for or in relation to employment, and promotion. All categories of workers are covered under the Act, including full & part-time workers, temporary and agency workers, self-employed and partnerships, and those employed in a domestic setting.
Below are the nine grounds from which the legislation primarily seeks to cover employees:
- Gender
- Civil status
- Family status
- Sexual orientation
- Religion
- Age
- Disability
- Race (including colour/nationality/ethnic or national origin)
- Membership of the Traveller community
These nine grounds cover the categories to which an employee could take an equality case against an employer and within this, there are three primary areas under which an employee may feel they have been subjected to unequal treatment: discrimination, harassment, and victimisation.
How will the EU resolution impact Irish employers?
It's interesting that this EU resolution could be enforced here, and some aspects such as the publishing of salary bands and information etc. could create issues for some employers. This is especially true for smaller businesses that may not have any defined salary structures in place or have the capacity to undertake workforce audits.
For the larger employer, this is something that should be taken note of as the likelihood of a female and male equivalent performing the same work is much higher. Therefore, it's important to ensure they're not at risk by paying one more than the other, especially if they are in any way in receipt of EU funding.
We will be keeping an eye on this matter on the blog and keep you updated with any follow on developments in the area of Employment Equality. However, employers should ensure that they have an existing Equal Opportunities policy in place and that this is being adhered to.
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