EU wants employers to disclose wages to close gender pay gap

Wage scales in Europe have long been shrouded in secrecy, which has helped perpetuate gender inequality on the continent.

The European Union’s executive branch wants to force employers to be much more open about how much their staff earn to make it easier for women to challenge wage imbalances and close the gender pay gap. Even though the gender pay gap across the 27-nation bloc has been reduced to 14 percent for people doing exactly the same work, the European Commission wants to eliminate the disparity by imposing specific rules to make pay levels public. “For equal pay, you need transparency. Women must know whether their employers treat them fairly,” said EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.