Equal pay for work of equal value is a fundamental labour and human right

Today on International Equal Pay Day, the message from the EESC Workers' Group is loud and clear: Equal pay is not a bureaucratic box to tick; it is a fundamental human right, essential for social progress. Governments must ensure that pay equity becomes a reality for all workers – a goal that benefits workers, strengthens businesses and contributes to a fairer society for everyone.

The EU Pay Transparency Directive adopted in 2023, is now part of a clear political commitment under the Gender Equality Strategy 2026–2030, launched by the European Commission on 5 March 2026. The Commission has reaffirmed the need for the Directive to be implemented fully and effectively. Member States were required to transpose the Directive into national law by 7 June 2026. However, some Member States have yet to complete the transposition process.

Trade unions have warned that delays in implementing the Directive leave women workers across Europe "in the dark", losing billions in wages. Effective implementation is essential to ensure that the right to equal pay for equal work is not only recognised in law but can be exercised in practice.

EESC member and rapporteur for the opinion Binding pay transparency measures, Pekka Ristelä stresses: “Equal pay has been a treaty-based EU principle for decades, but progress has been shamefully slow. The delay of most Member States in transposing the Pay Transparency Directive is completely unacceptable, and the European Commission is right to call for the member states to fulfill their obligations.”

The EESC Workers' Group and Trade Unions core demands for achieving true pay equity include:

• Gender-neutral job evaluation: The criteria used to determine what constitutes “work of equal value” must be objective, gender-neutral and free from direct or indirect gender bias
• Strengthening employer accountability: Employers must make pay-setting criteria and pay ranges transparent, explain unjustified pay differences and take corrective action where discriminatory gaps are identified
• Empowering collective bargaining: Trade unions and workers’ representatives must have a strong role in negotiating fair wages, particularly in sectors and occupations where women’s work has historically been undervalued
• Extending reporting obligations: Pay-gap reporting should cover smaller employers as well, ensuring that workers in small and medium-sized enterprises also benefit from effective pay transparency and accountability.

The ILO’s Equal Remuneration Convention (C100) directly addresses the principle of equal pay for men and women for work of equal value. It promotes objective job evaluation and recognises collective agreements and cooperation with workers’ and employers’ organisations as important means of putting this principle into practice.

Lucie Studničná, President of the EESC Workers' Group underlines: "A 20% gender pay gap is not acceptable and certainly not a progress. Women have waited almost 70 years for the promise of equal pay. Enough is enough! Equal pay is not a favour or a promise for another generation. It is a fundamental right. The figures are a reason for anger as well as concern as we believe that women and men deserve equal pay for equal work or work of equal value. The European Commission must act now to make equal pay a reality".