June 7, 2026 is approaching. This is the deadline by which European Union member states must have transposed Directive (EU) 2023/970 on pay transparency into national law. In Belgium, progress is uneven: the Wallonia-Brussels Federation has already adopted a decree, Flanders is making progress with its local administrations, but for the private sector, the texts have not yet been finalized. And yet, on close reading of the European directive, one thing is clear: most of the framework is already in place.
Waiting for the law to be formally adopted before starting to prepare is taking an unnecessary risk.
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💡 That's the message we shared during our recent webinar on the subject, co-hosted with GOlegal. We received a lot of questions, so we thought it would be useful to put them into a full article. |
In Belgium, salary remains a taboo subject.
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📊 What do the statistics say? |
This silence is not insignificant: it sustains very real inequalities. In 2025, the corrected wage gap between men and women in Belgium still stood at 7%. Seven percent, after decades of equality legislation.
The directive takes this as its starting point: without transparency, victims of pay discrimination have no way of knowing about it, let alone contesting it. It does not demand that all salaries be publicly displayed. She is asking that the rules of the game be clear, documented and accessible.
If the directive primarily targets gender-based discrepancies, its effects are likely to be broader. Biases linked to origin, disability or even bargaining power could also be reduced by a more structured and transparent system.
At the heart of this directive lies a concept that will shake up many companies: work of equal value. The idea is simple: two functions should not be compared on the basis of their title alone, but on the basis of their real value to the organization. And this value must be assessed on the basis of objective, gender-neutral criteria.
These criteria include :
To these may be added any other relevant, objective (gender-neutral) criteria.
The most visible changes will affect your job adverts and interviews. Three major changes to anticipate:
1. Gender neutrality in job ads
Your advertisements must stop influencing, even unconsciously, the gender of applicants. You need to adapt job titles and develop a job offer whose wording does not encourage one gender over the other to apply. Your entire recruitment process should also be adapted so as not to take into account the gender of applicants.
2. The salary range before the first interview
The formulations "competitive package" or "to be discussed" disappear. Candidates should be aware of the salary package even before the first contact. Technically, it's not compulsory to mention it in the advertisement, but we strongly advise you to do so directly. Why? Because the data speaks for itself (Jobat):
These data show a simple reality: displaying the salary does not scare candidates away - quite the contrary. It attracts more qualified, better aligned profiles, and avoids lengthy processes with out-of-budget candidates.
3. The ban on asking about a candidate's salary history
You can no longer ask a candidate what their current salary is, nor ask for their pay slips. The question becomes: "What are your expectations for this position?" or "Our range is between X and Y. Is this in line with your expectations? Is that aligned with your expectations?"
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👀 Be careful |
The directive also requires structured internal transparency:
1. Objective, neutral remuneration criteria
Companies must set up or make available clear remuneration grids or criteria for each job category.
2. An end to pay secrecy
Contractual clauses that prevent employees from discussing their salaries with each other will become illegal.
3. A right to information with a deadline for response
All employees have the right to know the criteria used to determine their remuneration, as well as average levels for equivalent positions, broken down by gender. The employer has two months to respond, and must inform their teams of this right at least once a year.
4. Pay gap reporting
In Belgium, existing legislation (law of 2012) already imposes certain reporting obligations from 50 employees upwards. The European directive now defines its own thresholds, and Belgian transposition could make them even stricter.
| Company size | Frequency | First report |
| ≥ 250 employees | Annual | June 7, 2027 (2026 data) |
| 150 to 249 employees | Every 3 years | June 7, 2027 (2026 data) |
| 100 to 149 employees | Every 3 years | June 7, 2031 (2030 data) |
| < 100 employees | Optional / To be defined by Belgian legislator | |
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💡 To summarize Transparency applies tothe entire salary package (basic salary + any other benefits). |
Yes, it's going to take some work and force uncomfortable conversations about discrepancies you may have already known existed. But the directive will also clarify your processes, boost your attractiveness as an employer, improve the internal climate and protect you from increasing legal risks.
On the team side, employees who understand why they are paid the way they are - and who know that the rules are the same for everyone - engage differently. Salary discussions become structured conversations rather than arm wrestling.
And if your salary package isn't the most competitive on the market, it's also an opportunity to work on your Employee Value Proposition: corporate culture, management style, flexibility, career prospects, sense of mission. All the reasons why you feel good in an organization, and which count as much, if not more, for some talents than the salary package.
If a pay gap in excess of 5% (potentially lowered to 3% in Belgium) is observed without objective justification and without correction within 6 months (from the date of publication of the data), the company with over 100 employees(a mechanism triggered by the reporting obligation) must carry out a joint assessment with employee representatives, analyze the causes and implement a corrective plan.
Above all - and this is a fundamental change -the burden of proof is reversed. It is no longer up to the employee to prove discrimination. It is up to the employer to demonstrate that the differences are based on objective, gender-neutral criteria.
In the event of recognized discrimination, the employee is entitled to full compensation: back pay, regularization of bonuses and benefits, damages.
With regard to fines, the directive requires Member States to provide for effective, proportionate and dissuasive penalties - which may be calculated on the basis of the employer's gross annual sales or total payroll.
Another novelty not to be underestimated: the directive opens the way to collective action. Trade unions, equal treatment bodies and other representatives can take legal action on behalf of or in support of workers who have suffered pay discrimination.
1. Map your functions
Define job categories of equal value.
Standardize job descriptions to ensure consistency and neutrality. The BELGAM system is recognized as a reference framework for this mapping. Tools such as the People Model Canvas can also help.
2. Define objective criteria
Training, experience (and associated skills - not age), responsibilities, measurable performance, working conditions, hard and soft skills. These criteria must be documented, weighted, and applicable to all.
Involving employee representatives right from this stage is strongly recommended.
3. Build or adjust your pay scales
Carry out an external benchmark.
Identify unjustified internal discrepancies.
Correct them gradually.
Digitalize your salary policy via your HRIS.
To give you a concrete idea, here are three examples of situations you're likely to encounter:
4.Adapt your recruitment processes.
Review all your existing job adverts.
Remove prohibited questions.
Systematically include salary ranges as soon as they are published, for greater transparency.
5.Train your managers.
They are on the front line - both in recruitment interviews and in internal salary discussions. They need to understand the pay scales and be able to explain them. Ideally, they should be involved right from the job classification phase.
6.Ensure social dialogue.
Consult and involve your employee representatives throughout the process.
Anticipate reporting.
Set up regular monitoring to maintain compliance over time.
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🤔 Can a pay gap be corrected by lowering the salary of an "overpaid" employee? |
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🤔 Does the directive apply to local authorities? |
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🤔 When a recruitment agency is commissioned, who is responsible in the event of non-compliance? |
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🤔 How do you manage a discrepancy due to salary indexation? |
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🤔 How does the directive interact with GDPR? |
Belgian transposition has not yet been finalized, and the situation varies from sector to sector. In the public sector, progress is uneven: the Wallonia-Brussels Federation adopted a decree on May 16, 2024, with early application from January 1, 2025 for its administrations and education. In Flanders, a decree already explicitly imposes these obligations on local authorities. But for the rest of the public sector - and for the private sector as a whole - the transposition is not yet complete.
On the employers' side, the FEB argued for a slowdown, in line with BusinessEurope's desire to renegotiate the directive. Meanwhile, countries such as Poland have already adopted the directive in December 2025, while others such as Sweden wish to renegotiate it (RTBF).
Our advice: don't wait. The broad guidelines are clear. The Belgian transposition will specify the details, but it will not change the spirit of the directive. And companies that have already done the groundwork (function mapping, objective criteria, documented grids) will be in a much better position when the law formally comes into force.
The full European directive is available here.
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😉 Any other questions? If you have any questions about your recruitment process, contact Profile Group here (complete the "You're recruiting" contact form). For legal questions, contact GOlegal here: dca@golegal.law |