Samira Rafaela: The fight for equal pay is a liberal fight

By Samira Rafaela

Despite having gender equality as a founding pillar in the EU, women still face inequality within the European internal market. The economy has been run far too long with only one type of man in mind, and we notice this immediately when we look at the gender pay gap. The principle of equal pay for equal work has been part of the EU Treaties since 1957, but women in the EU still earn 13% less than men in comparable positions. In some member states, this pay gap even reaches 22%.

These financial inequalities are not only wildly unfair, but they also have a long-term impact on the quality of women’s life and livelihoods. It has far-reaching consequences on the purchasing power of women, their position in the housing market and their pensions. If we leave this injustice to the markets to correct, studies estimate we will only be rid of the gender pay gap by 2086.

This is exactly why it was necessary to introduce strong legislation to close this gap. We do not have sixty more years to wait for equal treatment between men and women. The Pay Transparency Directive introduces binding measures that will empower all workers, through establishing the right to information in Europe. Everyone will have the right to know what they deserve be paid for the work they deliver, and how this pay level is established. This information will no longer be stuck in old boy’s networks.

And when I say that everyone has the right to information, I really do mean everybody. For the first time in European legislation, we have made the explicit reference to non-binary workers as having the same rights as male and female workers. Also for the first time, intersectional discrimination is defined in a Directive and has been included as an aggravated factor when determining penalties in cases of pay discrimination.

These elements were of particular importance to me. How could we make legislation tackling discrimination without recognizing that different people have to deal with different types of discrimination? Inclusive law-making should not be a buzzword, it should be consistent action. And now that the Pay Transparency Directive has taken a first step in recognizing non-binary people and intersectional discrimination in the institutional sphere, other European legislation should follow suit.

At the start people told me the institutions were not ready for these progressive elements. That we shouldn’t risk blocking this file due of these difficult elements. Remember, they always try to halt progress with this kind of empty reasoning. As a progressive liberal, I would rather walk away from the negotiation table, than maintain the status quo.

So now the challenge is to persist in our shared mission to make Europe work for all our citizens. With Pay Transparency, we have shown that we can make legislation that recognizes the diversity of our citizens and can empower us all. This should not be an anomaly, but the start of a new type of law-making: progressive, inclusive and truly liberal law-making.