EU directive: next year we will be able to find out how much our colleagues earn

The most important goal of the Pay Transparency Directive is that companies operating in the EU must inform candidates about the salary package for the position before the job interview, and they cannot ask applicants how much they earned at their previous job. After starting work, the new colleague can request information about the average salary of his/her colleagues who perform the same or equivalent work, the reasons for any differences, and this can be requested by gender. Of course, this information will also have to be public for existing employees.

How can employers prepare?

The directive sets mandatory targets for EU member states, but individual countries will develop their own laws to meet the set targets. There is no specific information yet about how this will change the Hungarian legal framework, but it is important for companies to have a clear view of their internal salary system and to have a well-thought-out salary book.

Employers often do not have a precise plan for the period following the implementation of the directives. Companies that do not have a precise organizational chart with the associated benefit packages will probably have more tasks in the next year or so, because they need to develop these precisely. It is important that companies also have a precisely developed wage structure and wage strategy for the coming period – this is how they can plan most effectively and adapt to changes.

Companies therefore have a key task: on the one hand, they need to assess the extent of the differences between wages by position within the organization, weigh employee competencies and calculate the financial implications of the solution. In addition, appropriate communication towards employees is essential.