The principle of equal pay for men and women for equal work or work of equal value through pay transparency and enforcement mechanisms

On April 15, 2026, the National Council of the Slovak Republic approved the Act on Equal Pay for Men and Women for Equal Work or Work of Equal Value and on Amendments to Certain Acts. If signed by the President of the Slovak Republic, it will take effect on June 7, 2026. Since the introduction of the draft text (fall 2025), the act has undergone certain changes; below we provide a brief overview of those provisions that we consider most relevant, particularly from the perspective of employers.

What is it about?

The prohibition of discrimination in the pay of employees and the right to equal pay for equal work or work of equal value has long been part of Slovak legislation (in particular Section 119a of the Labour Code). However, from the EU's point of view, the rules formulated so far have appeared insufficient in view of the persistent differences in pay. Therefore, new legislation is being introduced to establish new rules (Section 119a of the Labour Code which was originally supposed to be repealed, will ultimately remain in effect, but in a narrowed scope), increase transparency, and strengthen employees' rights. In general, the following will apply:

• men and women have the right to equal pay for equal work or work of equal value;
• the right to equal pay for equal work or work of equal value also applies to employees of the same sex;
• employers' pay structures must also allow for comparison of the value of different jobs within the same organizational structure.

EMPLOYERS' OBLIGATIONS

The purpose of this information is not to comprehensively list all the provisions of the proposed law, but to inform you of the obligations you will have to fulfill when it is implemented. These apply to every employer, with the number of obligations increasing with the number of employees. If you have employee representatives, they are also expected to participate in the processes described below.

Obligations of all employers

I. Towards job applicants

• the applicant has the right to receive information from the employer about the pay or pay range for the job they are applying for, determined on the basis of objective and gender-neutral criteria - before the job interview or before concluding the contract (for example, in a published job offer – currently, only the basic salary is required to be published under Section 62(2) of Act No. 5/2004 Coll.);
• prohibition on requesting information about the job seeker's pay from their current employer or previous employers;

II. Towards all employees

• introduction and application of a so-called pay structure, which will be, for example, an internal document enabling the assessment of whether employees perform the same work or work of equal value, which is determined on the basis of objective and gender-neutral criteria. There will be four main (mandatory) criteria: (i) skills (e.g., knowledge, interpersonal skills, problem-solving), (ii) responsibility (e.g., for people, goods, information, financial resources), (iii) effort (e.g. mental and psycho-social, physical) and (iv) working conditions (e.g., physical, psychological, emotional or organisational environment), and (v) other factors relevant to the specific job or position. When applying these criteria, the social skills, communication skills, and personal characteristics of employees will be taken into account.

Employers will therefore have to draw up rules by July 31, 2026, at the latest, setting out and evaluating (probably on a points basis) the individual objective criteria and their weighting, so as to enable comparison not only of the same positions but of all positions within a single company.

• Disclosure of criteria used to determine the pay/level of pay of employees, with employers with 50 or more employees also having to inform employees of the criteria for increasing their pay (i.e., salary progression). The criteria should be easily accessible to all employees, for example on the intranet.
• Obligation to inform employees, upon request, (i) of their pay level and (ii) of the average pay levels broken down by gender for categories of employees performing the same work or work of equal value (starting from 2027).
• Obligation to inform all employees once a year about their right to information under the previous point and about the procedure for exercising this right

Obligations of employers with more than 100 or 250 employees

In addition to the above obligations these employers will be required to prepare and provide the Ministry of Labor, Social Affairs and Family of the Slovak Republic with a pay gap report in the structure prescribed by law, either once a year (250 or more employees) or once every three years (100 to 249 employees).

If the report identifies a 5% difference in any category of employees and this is not (i) objectively justifiable or (ii) eliminated within 6 months, the employer will be required to carry out, within 2 months, in cooperation with employee representatives (if any; if not, with a representative specifically designated by the employees for the purpose of joint assessment, or otherwise independently), a so-called joint pay assessment "with the aim of identifying and correcting differences". This joint pay assessment will then be made available to employees, employee representatives, and the Ministry of Labor, Social Affairs and Family of the Slovak Republic.

EMPLOYEES' RIGHT TO COMPENSATION

If the principle of equal pay is violated, the employee (or the person concerned) will be entitled to monetary compensation for the damage, which may consist of (i) the difference in pay that the individual would have been entitled to if the principle of equal pay had not been violated, and the pay paid to them, (ii) compensation for lost opportunities, (iii) compensation for non-pecuniary damage, (iv) compensation for other damage, and (v) interest on late payment of unpaid pay.

The monetary compensation shall be provided in an amount sufficient to place the individual in the same financial position as if the violation of the principle of equal pay had not occurred.

The limitation period will be three years, and in the event of such a dispute, the burden of proof will be shifted to the employer, who will have to prove that no discrimination occurred. In addition, comparisons of equal pay may be made not only with the employer concerned, but also with various employers "for whom the same pay conditions are established" or only with a hypothetical comparable employer if no such employer actually exists ("comparison of how the employee would be treated in a comparable situation").