Employers in Lithuania are calling for a delay to a pay transparency directive due to come into force this summer, warning they are not ready for the changes. Trade unions, however, say there has been ample time to prepare and that the new rules are too important to postpone.
Employers in Lithuania are calling for a delay to a pay transparency directive due to come into force this summer, warning they are not ready for the changes. Trade unions, however, say there has been ample time to prepare and that the new rules are too important to postpone.
In practical terms, this means that if a supermarket employs cashiers, warehouse staff and accountants, all employees in the same job category must receive equal pay for equal work. If salaries within a job group diverge by more than 5%, the employer will be required to explain the discrepancy to the State Labour Inspectorate.
"If an employer can objectively justify a gap of more than 5%, that is fine. But if they cannot, they will have to make up the difference – and raise the salary," said Dalia Jakutavičė, chairwoman of the Lithuanian Trade Union Confederation.
Companies will also face significantly higher administrative burdens. Under the new system, firms will be required to submit detailed data to Lithuania's social insurance agency Sodra – not just salary figures, as at present, but also hours worked, bonuses paid and holiday pay received.
Sodra will then calculate each employee's average hourly wage and, for companies with more than eight employees, publish the average pay figures for men and women.
Employers argue that a range of practical questions remain unresolved – not least how to assess the relative value of different job roles. The directive sets out four mandatory criteria: skills, effort, responsibility and working conditions. But the president of the Lithuanian Employers' Confederation, Aurelija Maldutytė, says the legislation needed to implement the rules domestically has not yet been finalised.
"We are not ready – I can say that plainly – because the legislation is still being considered in Seimas committees," she said. She also noted that Denmark and the Netherlands have already postponed their implementation dates, with other countries considering doing the same.
Trade unions are unmoved.
"The directive was adopted three years ago. Lithuania, like every other EU member state, has had three years to transpose it into national law," Jakutavičė said.
The Ministry of Social Security and Labour says the legislative process is on track and the new rules should come into force on schedule at the start of summer.
Employees wishing to find out how their salary compares with their colleagues' average will be able to request the information through a trade union, the State Labour Inspectorate, or the Office of the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson.
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