Barely half of Belgian women currently feel they are paid fairly, compared to 63% of men, according to a survey by social secretariat Partena Professional on Tuesday.
The research by Partena in collaboration with Labour Economics Professor Stijn Baert (UGent) among 250 Belgian employers and 1,000 employees shows that 52% of women currently feel they are paid fairly. Among men, the figure is 63%. Among women, 76% are in favour of the incoming European Wage Transparency Directive.
Women currently earn about 13% less than men in Europe, but Belgium does a lot better at 5%. "However, wage discrimination has no place in the labour market of the future," said Yves Stox, managing consultant at Partena.
With the advent of the Wage Transparency Directive, one in four working Belgians think it will strengthen their bargaining position. In this respect, there is no significant difference between men and women.
Pay policy insights
Yet taboos around asking for salary rises remain: almost half of Belgian workers would not dare inquire about average wages even with the new legislation. "This diffidence is more prevalent in French-speaking Belgium than in Flanders and more among older workers," said Baert.
The survey shows that barely one in five employers know that the wage transparency directive is coming and what it entails. Just over a quarter (26%) of them are concerned about the impact the directive could have on wage trends in their company.
By 2026, Belgium must implement the European Wage Transparency Directive. That directive will ensure fair, gender-neutral pay for equal work.
Companies will be obliged to give employees and job applicants more insight into their pay policy, such as the pay scale their job will be in and the average wage of the same job.
