• Title of the proposed citizens’ initiative (maximum 100 characters): European Citizens Initiative to achieve equal pay between women and men
• Subject-matter (maximum 200 characters): to strengthen the application of the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal value between men and women
• Objectives of the proposed citizens’ initiative on which the Commission is invited to act (maximum 500 characters): to guarantee equal pay between men and women for qual work
• Provisions of the Treaties considered relevant by the organizers for the proposed action: art. 10-19-157 TFUE; art 21-23 EU Charter

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 157(3) thereof,

Whereas:

Articles 2 and 3(3) of the Treaty on European Union enshrine the right to equality between women and men as one of the essential values and tasks of the Union;

Articles 8 and 10 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (‘TFEU’) provide that the Union shall aim to eliminate inequalities, to promote equality between men and women and to combat discrimination based on sex in all its activities;

Article 157(1) of the TFEU obliges each Member State to ensure that the principle of equal pay for male and female workers for equal work or work of equal value is applied;

Article 23 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union provides that equality between women and men must be ensured in all areas, including employment, work and pay;

The European Pillar of Social Rights[1], jointly proclaimed by the European Parliament, the Council, and the Commission, incorporates among its principles equality of treatment and opportunities between women and men, and the right to equal pay for work of equal value;

Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025 by the European Commission;

The right of men and women to equal pay for work of equal value is recognised also by the fundamental International Labour Organisation Equal Remuneration Convention of 1951 (No 100), and Article 4(3) of the Council of Europe (Revised) European Social Charter.

PROPOSES THE DEVELOP OF THIS DIRECTIVE

Subject matter

The purpose of this Directive is to strengthen the implementation of the principle of equal pay for female and male workers for equal work or work of equal value.

To that end, this Directive contains provisions relating to:

1. the concept of work of equal value;
2. the establishment of job evaluation and classification systems free from gender bias;
3. wage transparency

Article 1

Comparator

Member States shall ensure that it is possible for a woman to compare her treatment to the treatment that a man would have received had they been engaged in the same work or work to which equal value is attributed, subject to the assumption that no material difference in circumstances would have existed between such a person and the woman seeking to make such a comparison.

Article 2

Gender-free job evaluation

1. Job evaluation and classification systems must be free from gender bias. They must be analytical and based on objective criteria for the assessment and comparison of the value of work in different jobs and sectors.
2. The value of work is assessed and compared by reference to objective criteria, including but not limited to:
   1. skill, including education, training, experience, knowledge, interpersonal skills, problem solving, organisational skills;
   2. effort, including physical, mental and psycho-social effort;
   3. responsibility, including accountability, responsibility for people, goods and equipment, information or financial resources;
   4. working conditions, including the nature of the tasks involved, organisational environment, physical, psychological or emotional environment
3. Member States shall clarify the concept of work of equal value in their national legislation in accordance with paragraph.

Article 3

Right to request information

Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that workers and their trade unions can request from the employer clear and complete information on pay levels, broken down by gender, for categories of workers doing the same work or work of equal value.

[1] https://commission.europa.eu/select-language?destination=/node/1