Poland takes initial steps toward reducing the gender pay gap in line with the EU Pay Transparency Directive, with requirements for employers on sharing pay levels with current and future employees.
Employer Action Code: Monitor
A group of members of Parliament has published a draft bill to transpose part of the European Union (EU) Pay Transparency Directive. While separate from the government's own initial actions, this is an informative opening move to the transposition of the directive in Poland (Sweden is currently the only member state to have published formal, draft transposition provisions for the private sector — see July 2024 Global News Brief: Sweden: Draft legislation to transpose the EU Pay Transparency Directive). As a reminder, the directive aims to ensure equal pay for equal work or work of equal value between men and women by giving employees extensive new rights to information about their own pay and that of their male and female peers in the same organization. Member states have until June 2026 to transpose the requirements into local law. The bill is currently with Parliament for consultation.
Key details
The draft bill is broadly in line with the directive and would require:
- Pay transparency during recruitment: Employers would be required to provide job applicants with the minimum and maximum pay in the job posting. This goes beyond the provisions of the directive, which allows for the information to be included in the job postings or in reasonable time as part of a job offer to allow for informed negotiations on pay.
- Pay transparency on average pay: Employees would be entitled to information on their pay relative to average pay levels for workers performing equal work, broken down by gender. Employers would be required to provide the information within 14 calendar days of the request, which is much less than the two-month time frame stated in the directive. The draft bill defines remuneration as ordinary minimum hourly wage or monthly wage and other cash or in-kind benefits paid to the employee.
- Transparency on pay setting: Employers would be required to provide information on the criteria used (which must be objective and gender-neutral) to determine pay levels and pay progression for a given role on request.
The bill does not (yet) contain any provisions for the reporting of gender pay gaps, internally or externally, as required under the directive.
Employer implications
In terms of overall pay gaps in Poland, women's hourly earnings were 8% below those of men as of 2022 (compared with an EU average of 13%, according to Eurostat data). The directive is expected to have a lasting impact on pay equity and transparency in Europe; employers in Poland and other member states should start preparing for the pay transparency requirements to ensure that their pay and benefits are ready for this level of transparency and that they are delivering equal pay.
Please refer to WTW's white paper, EU Pay Transparency Directive – Transposing into national law, to find out more on WTW's specific guidance and expert recommendations for transposing the directive into national law.
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