Answer to the public consultation from the EU Commission on “equal pay”

The fact that mothers suffer a wage penalty raises major concerns that go beyond those highlighted  by  gender  inequality.  This  ultimately  questions  the  capacity  of  societies  to manage a sustainable balance between their economic aim of active female participation in paid  work  and  the  social  aims  of  providing a fair distribution of income to support the reproduction and rearing of children.

Moreover, the absence of a definition of the concept of work of equal value, including clear evaluation criteria for the comparison of different functions, constitutes a major obstacle for victims of wage discrimination seeking legal action. The inclusion in European Union legislation, enforceable in national legislation, of such a definition and criteria for classification and evaluation of functions could help victims of wage discrimination to bring an action before the national courts.

In  Chapter  I,  this  paper will  present  a  short  exposition of the gender pay gap in the European Union. In Chapter II, it will explore the underlying cause of the gender pay gap, which  arises  from  the  unequal  distribution of unpaid care work. In Chapter III, summary will be presented of current situation in Belgium on equal pay, and finally there will be some recommendations in Chapter IV.

Answer Public Consultation 5th April
MMM Contribution EU Survey