Equal Pay Day: gender pay gap must end

“The European Equal Pay Day is above all a day to remind us about the efforts and initiatives that should be implemented to achieve complete equality between men and women”, declared Manfred Weber MEP, Chairman of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, and Constance le Grip MEP, EPP Group Spokeswoman in the Women's Rights and Gender Equality Committee of the European Parliament.

This EU event marks the date on which women would cease to earn a salary if we compare their annual remuneration to that of men. This year, this date would fall on 2 November.

“Even if the figures are improving, the progress in closing the gender pay gap has been too slow and still stands at 16.3% across the EU. Rooted in professional career, differences between men and women, but also in clear discrimination acts against women, this gap is unacceptable and goes against our core values”, said Weber and le Grip.

“In order to move forward, it is necessary to break the many glass ceilings that hinder the advancement of women on the labour market and reinforce inequalities in terms of wages and retirement pensions. It is also urgent to revise and improve the 2006/54/EC Directive on the implementation of the principle of equal opportunities and equal treatment between men and women in matters of employment and occupation”, they continued.

“It is urgent that Member States and the European Institutions take action to make the motto 'equal pay for equal work' a reality”, they concluded.