European Parliament
A7-0160/2012
Edit Bauer,
rapporteur.
Madam President, we can all agree that the gender pay gap should be closed. The question is how?
Back on 8 March 2010, 10 young female members of the European Parliament requested a legislative initiative report on equal pay for equal work, pursuant to Rule 42 of the Rules of Procedure. Under this rule, Parliament may request the Commission to submit a proposal for a new act or to amend the old one. There is a new legal basis here: Article 157 of the Lisbon Treaty and the secondary legislation in force.
Directive 2006/54 on the implementation of the principle of equal opportunities and equal treatment of men and women in matters of employment and occupation – the so-called Recast Directive – replaced Directive 75/117 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the application of the principle of equal pay for men and women. Even though the deadline for transposition of the Recast Directive was in 2008, legal experts are of the opinion that only small or no profound changes have been made in Member States’ legislation, and that no sanctions have been taken against employers under the directive’s provisions.
There is only slow progress. The gender pay gap is currently 16.4% – varying from 4.5% up to 25.5% in individual Member States – yet legislation has been in force for almost 40 years. It is obviously not efficient.
The question is what to do with an inefficient piece of legislation? We are aware that legislation itself is not enough to tackle the issue, but experience shows that legislation can be improved and better enforced. The gender pay gap is a complex and multifaceted issue with multiple causes, including social and economic factors, such as occupational and sectoral segregation in the labour market, the undervaluing of women’s work, an imbalance between work and private life, and traditions and stereotypes such as the choice of educational paths and employment patterns, to mention only some of them. The explanations account for only half the difference: the remainder is considered as a difference caused by direct and indirect discrimination.
What is more, statistics show that the gender pay gap is apparent after women’s return to the labour market following the birth of a first child, and that it grows with age, because of career breaks, but also with educational level. For these reasons, the answer has to be holistic and multi-level. It has to combine legislative and non-legislative measures, both of which are essential.
Our aim in this report was to identify those areas in legislation where improvement can be made. Since the Commission has an obligation under Article 32 of the Recast Directive to review the directive and, if appropriate, to propose amendments in 2013, we call on the Commission to address the unjust discrimination against women and to make the legislation on diminishing the gender pay gap more effective. Improvements based on the best practices of various Member States are also requested in selected areas. Equal work or work of equal value has to be regarded equally whether it is done by men or women. No excuse can be acceptable.

