Equal pay and equal treatment at work (Article 157 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) and Recast Directive 2006/54)

• Author: Romina Bartolo
• Pages: 18-24

18

4 Equal pay and equal treatment at work (Article 157 of the Treaty on the

Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) and Recast D irective 2006/54)

4.1 General (legal) context

4.1.1 Surveys on the gender pay gap and the difficulties of realising equal pay

In 2018, a vide o was released aimin g to raise awarenes s about Malta’s gender pay gap

and the factors that contribute to it; the video was part of a project initiated by V Squared

Media, a Maltese media hou se, in collaboration with EY Malta and with the support of the

Centre for Labour Studies at the University of Malta, the National Statistics Office and

emPOWer: Platf orm for Organisations for Women.14 The pay gap was found to be more

pronounced than the 11 % Maltese average in specific industries: a 28.3 % pay gap was

found in the financial and insurance industry, a 23.1 % pay gap was found in professional,

scientific and technical activities and a 20.6 % pay gap was found in the ICT industry.15

4.1.2 Surveys on the difficulties of realising equal treatment at work

There have been several articles and p resentations on the barriers to equal treatment at

work.16 In 201 7, the National Commissi on for the Promotion of Equality (NCPE)

implemented a project co-funded by the EU: Equality Beyond Gender Roles. The project

aimed to raise awareness o f the relevance of men’s role in gender equality in order to:

reach a fair balance between work and private life and between paid and un paid work;

break down gender stereotypes tied to traditional gender roles by sensitising an d

empowering students, employers and citizens; further encourage men to tak e action to

combat or prevent unilateral responsibilities, t o share domestic duties and care

responsibilities, a s well as to strive t owards equal economic independence between the

genders; and increase overall awareness of t he various types of family friendly m easures

and the benefits and responsibilities of making use of them.17

4.1.3 Other issues

There are no additional issues to report.

4.1.4 Political and societal debate and pending legislati ve proposals

There are no debates or pending legislative proposals to report.

4.2 Equal pay

4.2.1 Implementation in national law

The Employment and Industrial Relations Act, Article 27 , provides that employees in the

same class of employment are entitled to the same rate of remuneration for work of equal

value.

14 The Malta Independent (2018), ‘Women earn 11% less on average than men; gender pay gap hindering

inclusive economy – President’, 12 November 2018. Available at:

http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2018-11-12/local-news/Women-earn-11-less-on-average-than-

men-gender-pay-gap-hindering-inclusive-economy-President-6736199234.

15 The Malta Independent (2018), ‘Women earn 11% less on average than men; gender pay gap hindering

inclusive economy – President’, 12 November 2018.

16 Articles include newspaper articles https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/Equality-and-the-

workplace.612206, https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/malta-remains-worse-than-eu-average-for-

gender-equality.691432; https://www.pressreader.com/.

17 https://ncpe.gov.mt/en/Pages/Projects_and_Specific_Initiatives/Equality-Beyond-Gender-Roles.aspx.