EU pay transparency rights start, but Belgium still needs national rules
Workers across the European Union are gaining stronger rights to know how pay is set, how comparable colleagues are paid and whether a gender pay gap is hidden inside their employer. The directive also changes the balance of power in equal-pay disputes.
In 30 seconds
- EU member states had to transpose Directive (EU) 2023/970 by 7 June 2026.
- Workers may request average pay levels for comparable work, broken down by sex.
- Job applicants must receive starting pay or salary-range information and cannot be asked about past pay.
- Employers with 100 or more workers face phased gender pay-gap reporting duties.
The subject is Directive (EU) 2023/970, the EU Pay Transparency Directive. It gives workers and job applicants stronger rights to pay information and requires employers to report and address gender pay gaps. Belgium must implement it through national labour law before workers can fully use the new procedures in Belgian workplaces.
Background
Equal pay has been part of EU law since the Treaty of Rome, but enforcement has often depended on workers proving discrimination without access to pay data. The new directive responds to that information gap by making transparency itself a legal tool.
What to do
Job applicants should expect clearer pay information once Belgian rules are operational. Employees should be able to request comparable pay data without receiving named colleagues’ salaries. Employers should audit salary bands, job classifications and promotion criteria now.
The Belgian angle
The effect will be national across Belgium, but implementation will interact with regional labour markets in Brussels, Flanders and Wallonia and with Belgium’s sector-based collective bargaining system.
EvidenceDeveloping · 1 primary source + 3 official documents · Background sources: 1 · some details remain unconfirmedExplore evidence →Hide evidence ↑
- Published:
- 7 Jun 2026, 02:00
- Retrieved by ODIN:
- 13 Jun 2026
- Published:
- 17 May 2023, 02:00
- Retrieved by ODIN:
- 13 Jun 2026
- Publication date unavailable
- Retrieved by ODIN:
- 13 Jun 2026
- Published:
- 24 Apr 2023, 02:00
- Retrieved by ODIN:
- 13 Jun 2026
- Publication date unavailable
- Retrieved by ODIN:
- 13 Jun 2026
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