Mandatory salary registration for companies with more than 50 employees. That is, they are obliged to “pay audit”.
As part of the plan for the “development of effective equality between men and women in the workplace”, and in the same Council of Ministers that approved the order that develops the regulations for the implementation of the equality plan in companies, RD 902/2020, of 13 October, was approved.
The purpose of this RDL, whose origin lies in RD Law 6/2019 which introduced the salary register as a new obligation for all companies, is to specify in detail the criteria, deadlines and obligations in companies. To implement measures that make effective the right to equal treatment and non-discrimination between women and men in terms of remuneration. To develop mechanisms to identify and correct discrimination in this area, promoting the necessary conditions and eliminating existing obstacles.
Mandatory salary registration
Companies obliged to carry out an equality plan will have to include a remuneration audit in the plan. To check compliance with the principle of equality between men and women in terms of pay.
Who is obliged to carry out an equal pay register?
As established by RDL6/2019, in its article 2.7 “all companies are obliged to carry out a register of the remuneration of their staff, including management and senior officials”.
In the recent RD, article 4 again includes the principle of “equal pay for work of equal value”. It defines what is considered to be work of equal value:
- when “that which carries out the same functions or tasks effectively entrusted, the educational, professional or training conditions required for their exercise, the factors strictly related to their performance and the working conditions under which these activities are actually carried out are equivalent”:
How is the recording of remuneration carried out?
The remuneration register must include the average values of salaries according to the nature of the remuneration. It should specify, in a differentiated manner, the basic salary, each of the salary supplements and each of the extra- salary payments. Disaggregated by sex and distributed by professional groups, professional categories or jobs of the same or equal value.
This record should contain the arithmetic mean and the median of what is actually received for each concept, occupational group, category, position or any other applicable classification system. The reference period is 1 calendar year, unless there are substantial changes in any of the concepts.
Companies with legal representation of workers must be consulted. With at least ten days’ notice, prior to drawing up the register. As well as when it suffers any alteration.
Assessment of jobs
It establishes the rule that a correct evaluation of the jobs requires the application of the criteria of suitability, completeness and objectivity:
- Adaptation implies that the relevant factors in the evaluation must be those related to the activity and that they effectively concur in it. Including the necessary training.
- Completeness implies that, in order to determine whether the same value is being achieved, all the conditions that characterise the job must be taken into account. Without any of them being made invisible or undervalued.
- Objectivity implies that there must be clear mechanisms that identify the factors that have been taken into account when setting a certain remuneration. And that they do not depend on social factors or assessments that reflect gender stereotypes.
A “job evaluation procedure” should be approved and published in the coming months. However, it is also the function of the negotiating tables for the collective agreements applicable in the companies to check that the definition of the professional groups conforms to criteria and systems which guarantee the absence of direct and indirect discrimination between women and men. And the correct application of the principle of equal pay for work of equal value.
Who has access to the register of remuneration?
The legal representation of employees has the right to access the full contents of the register. In the absence of such representation, however, workers who require information will only have access to the percentage differences in average pay between men and women. The averages are not shown in absolute figures and this information is disaggregated according to the nature of the perception and the applicable professional classification.
When is an audit of the remuneration register required?
All companies are subject to an “audit of the remuneration register” from the moment they are required to have an equality plan.
Unlike other companies that are not obliged to carry out an audit, in this case the salary register must be done by grouping together jobs of equal value. Following the procedure established for this purpose. They are obliged to justify those wage differences equal to or greater than 25% between men and women, in which they are not related to the sex of the workers.
The equality plans must include an internal remuneration audit that reflects compliance with the principle of equal pay for men and women. It shall be in force in accordance with the equality plan of which it forms a part. Unless a lower one is determined in the plan, it must contain a diagnosis of the pay situation in the company. And, if appropriate, an action plan to correct any inequalities that may have been detected.
As we have indicated, the obligation to carry out wage registration already existed. Although all companies have 6 months to adapt their records (April 2021), to the changes introduced with the approval of this new RD.
We would remind you that this “new obligation” is compulsory for all companies. Furthermore, in those cases where it is established that there is a wage inequality between men and women, it can be considered a very serious breach. Facing sanctions that can range from 6,251 to 178,500 euros. Depending on the graduation of the sanction, without prejudice to having to pay the worker the corresponding compensation determined for this purpose.
If you need help in how to carry out this mandatory wage registration, please contact us.
Arrabe Integra
Labour Consulting and HR Management