The draft law of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security entitled “Strengthening the implementation of equal pay between men and women for equal work or work of equal value – Transposition of Directive (EU) 2023/970” has been put to public consultation.
The new draft law introduces, for the first time, a comprehensive framework for pay transparency in two areas: before recruitment and during the employment relationship.
Before recruitment, the company:
● must inform candidates of the salary or salary range for the position offered
● may not ask the candidate about the level of pay they received in previous employment
During the employment relationship, companies will be required to submit data on:
● the pay gap in remuneration and additional corporate benefits
● the pay gap by category of employees
The employee will be able to ask:
● how they are classified in terms of pay
● the average pay of men and women for the same or equivalent work
An internal pay-gap audit is also introduced for companies. Companies will be required to submit data on the pay gap between men and women, the gender gap in bonuses, the median pay gap, and the pay gap by category of employees. This obligation will apply annually to companies with 250 or more employees and every three years to companies with 100 or more employees.
If a pay difference is identified without an objective explanation, such as greater experience or more qualifications, the company will be required to correct it.
The new framework is also linked to the effort to strengthen collective labour agreements. It provides that where a collective labour agreement applies, it is presumed, in principle, that there are no unjustified pay discriminations, and that collective labour agreements may be used as a basis for creating pay structures within companies.
The draft law also significantly strengthens the judicial protection of employees. If an employee believes that discrimination exists, they have the right to request pay information, take legal action, and be represented by a trade union organisation or equality body.
The bill contains a total of 45 articles and will remain under public consultation until 17 June.
The comments submitted will be taken into account in shaping the final text.
The bill has been posted here
Below are 11+1 questions and answers on the new draft law of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security concerning the strengthening of equal pay between men and women for equal work or work of equal value.
1. What is the essence of the equal pay bill?
In one sentence: pay should be determined by your work and your value, not by your gender. Gender must play no role in determining remuneration.
2. Is there currently a pay gap between men and women?
Yes. Despite improvements in recent years, the gender pay gap still exists both in Greece and in Europe. According to the latest data, women’s average hourly earnings are 13.4% lower than those of men in Greece, and 11.1% lower than those of men in Europe.
The new draft law is based on the principle that it is not enough for equal pay to be provided for in theory; mechanisms of transparency, control and actual implementation in the labour market are also needed.
3. I am a female employee. What will actually change in my daily working life?
For the first time, a more organised framework is being created so that you can know whether you are being paid fairly and can more easily claim your rights.
Until now, the principle of equal pay existed in legislation, but in practice many women found it difficult to prove that discrimination existed, or even to obtain an overview of how comparable positions were paid within the same company.
Under the new draft law, salary transparency is increased, companies are required to have clearer pay structures, employees are given the right to access more information, and protection is strengthened where there is a suspicion of discrimination.
The aim is for pay to depend not on gender, but on the real value of the work.
4. How will I be able to tell if I am being paid less than a colleague doing the same work?
The most important point is that you will now have a right to information.
You will be able to request information not only about your individual pay level, but also about the average pay of men and women performing the same or equivalent work in the company.
This substantially changes the situation, because employees often do not know whether there is a difference in pay. Until now, salaries often functioned as a “closed information system”. Greater transparency is now being introduced so that unjustified differences and unequal treatment can be identified more easily.
5. Does this mean that all men and women must be paid the same? Is there no meritocracy?
Of course meritocracy exists.
What both the bill and the European Directive from which it derives seek to achieve is the elimination of unjustified pay differences based on gender or other forms of discrimination. In other words, a man and a woman in the same job, with the same qualifications and duties, should not be paid differently.
If there is an objective reason for a pay difference, for example if one person has much greater experience or more degrees, then the issue is not one of equal pay.
6. What changes in recruitment?
Until now, many candidates attended interviews without having even an approximate idea of the pay for the position they were applying for. In addition, information about previous salaries was often requested, which could perpetuate past inequalities.
Under the new framework, the employer is required to inform the candidate before the interview of the salary range or pay for the position, may not ask “how much were you earning in your previous job?”, and the recruitment process as a whole must be gender-neutral.
This means clearer rules from the outset and a limit on the reproduction of pay inequalities when changing jobs.
7. Who checks whether a company applies equal pay for equal work?
The Greek Ombudsman has a central role.
The new draft law strengthens the ability to conduct checks and intervene where there are indications of unjustified differences in pay.
In addition, larger companies are required to monitor and submit data on the gender pay gap at specific periodic intervals, depending on the number of employees they employ.
If a significant pay difference for equal work is identified without an objective explanation, corrective measures must be taken.
Therefore, the system is not based solely on an individual complaint by an employee, but creates an obligation of transparency and internal control within companies as well.
8. If I believe there is discrimination against me, what can I do?
You will be able to request information, appeal to the Labour Inspectorate, go to court, and receive support from the Greek Ombudsman or a trade union body.
The protective provision continues to apply whereby, if there are indications of discrimination, the burden of proof shifts to the employer.
This means that the employee does not have to prove the entire problem alone from beginning to end.
9. How are companies protected from abusive or repeated requests for pay information?
The draft law expressly provides that the employer may refuse to provide information where the request is disproportionate or abusive due to its repeated nature.
In such cases, the employee retains the right to request the information through the Greek Ombudsman, who assesses whether the request is justified.
At the same time, an obligation of confidentiality and secrecy is provided for employees and employee representatives with regard to the pay data they receive. In the event of a breach of these obligations, the company may claim compensation for the damage it has suffered.
10. What are the possible sanctions if discrimination is proven?
If it is proven that there was unjustified pay discrimination, the employee may receive full compensation, back pay or bonuses that they lost.
At the same time, the Labour Inspectorate retains the right to impose sanctions and fines.
11. What changes if a company has a collective labour agreement?
The new framework gives greater weight to collective labour agreements.
It provides that where a collective labour agreement applies, it is presumed, in principle, that there are no unjustified pay discriminations, and that collective labour agreements may be used as a basis for creating pay structures within companies.
At the same time, the company is required to adjust job categories so that the value of work within the organisation is correctly reflected, while the Labour Inspectorate fully retains its powers and employees continue to be protected.
Therefore, protection is not reduced; rather, an incentive is created for more organised collective arrangements.
For more information you may contact Betty Smyrniou