Implementation of the Equal Pay Directive – what will the draft law bring?

The application of the principle of equal pay in the EU is difficult, as evidenced by the persistent pay gap. In 2020, the pay gap in the European Union was 13%. In Poland, this figure is lower, but still noticeable – in 2023, it reached 7.8%.

Work is currently underway to implement an EU directive that will change the rules for determining and disclosing pay in Poland – the deadline for implementing the provisions into national law is 7 June 2026.

Below are the key assumptions of the draft that are worth knowing.

The draft law implements new, previously unregulated issues. It has been decided that these regulations will be included in a separate law, and not only in the Labour Code, because the Directive imposes obligations and rights not only on employers and employees, but also on equality bodies, the National Labour Inspectorate and the monitoring body.

New obligations for employers

The draft bill imposes a number of new obligations on employers, including:

• Job evaluation:

All employers, regardless of size, will be required to have remuneration structures in place that enable the analysis of comparable situations of employees. According to the draft, the minimum requirement is to apply four mandatory criteria for assessing the value of work: skills, effort, responsibility and working conditions. These criteria must be applied objectively and neutrally in terms of gender.

• Transparent communication of information:

Employers will be required to provide employees and job applicants with key information on remuneration (including the initial salary or salary range, criteria for determining remuneration and average salary levels broken down by gender for comparable categories) in a manner accessible to persons with disabilities.

• Easy access to information:

Employees are to be provided with easy access to the criteria used to determine remuneration.

Requirements of the Directive – reporting and remuneration assessment

The Directive introduces a reporting obligation for employers with at least 100 employees.

• The draft law specifies that employers with at least 100 employees will have to prepare a pay gap report. The frequency will depend on the size of the employer: every three years (for those employing at least 100 employees) or annually (for those employing at least 250 employees).
• The information contained in the report will be published by the monitoring authority.
• The report is to be submitted using an IT tool provided by the President of the Central Statistical Office.
• Request for clarification: employees, employee representatives and authorities (National Labour Inspectorate, equality body) have the right to ask the employer for additional clarification regarding the data in the report, and the employer must provide a reasoned response within 14 days.
• Joint remuneration assessment: employers with at least 100 employees are required to carry out a joint remuneration assessment if the following cumulative conditions are met:
• the report shows a pay gap of at least 5% in a given category,
• the employer has not justified it with objective criteria,
• or remedied it within 6 months of the report being submitted.

Enforcement and sanctions

The directive provides for penalties for violations of rights and obligations. The draft law introduces sanctions in the form of fines ranging from PLN 2,000 to PLN 60,000 for a number of violations, including:

• failure to assess the value of individual jobs,
• failure to prepare a pay gap report,
• including provisions in employment contracts prohibiting employees from disclosing their remuneration.

The draft bill grants powers to enforce the right to equal pay to the equality body, which is to work in cooperation with the National Labour Inspectorate, the monitoring body and the social partners.

Summary

Work on the draft is being carried out by the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy.

Although the text of the bill is still being refined, the deadline for full implementation of the Directive is mid-2026. It is worth taking a look at the remuneration systems currently in use in order to prepare as effectively as possible for the upcoming obligations in the area of pay transparency.

Source: The article was created in collaboration with our cooperation partner – sdzlegal Schindhelm Law Office

If you have any further questions or require additional information, please contact your business relationship person or use the enquiry form on the HLB Poland website.

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