Directive (EU) 2023/970 · Article 10
The joint pay assessment
What a 5% gap triggers, who has to be involved, and what closing it actually requires.
What triggers it
Where reporting shows an average pay gap of at least 5% in any category of workers doing work of equal value, and the employer cannot justify it on objective, gender-neutral factors, and has not remedied it within six months, a joint pay assessment is required.
What it involves
The assessment is carried out jointly with workers' representatives. It analyses the causes of the gap, including any differences not justified by objective criteria, and sets out the measures (and timelines) to address them.
From assessment to remediation
Closing the gap means modelling pay adjustments, costing them, and committing to an action plan. Done well, this turns a compliance trigger into a defensible, board-level remediation decision — with a documented rationale you can stand behind.
Frequently asked
What triggers a joint pay assessment?
An average gap of 5% or more in a category of equal-value work that the employer cannot justify objectively and has not corrected within six months of the report.
Who must be involved?
It is conducted jointly with workers' representatives — it is not a purely internal HR exercise.
What happens if the gap isn't closed?
The employer must agree and implement remedial measures with timelines. Unjustified, unresolved gaps expose the employer to enforcement, back-pay and litigation under national law.
Based on Directive (EU) 2023/970, Art. 10, via EUR-Lex, and practitioner summaries. Your national transposition governs — always confirm against it.