On April 1, 2025, AmCham hosted an event to discuss the EU Equal Pay Directive, an initiative designed to close the gender wage gap in Europe. We were honored to begin the session with insights from Samira Rafaela, former member of the EU Parliament and Visiting Fellow at ILR Law School, who was instrumental in passing this initiative. Following her talk, expert Andrew Poole discussed technical aspects that companies should both be aware of, and start preparing for, before they go into effect in June 2026. Attendees were able to hear from and ask questions to a panel that included Mairead MacLure, Global Head of Rewards at Signify, Ed d’Hooghe, Lead HR Director EMEAI, and Arif Ender, Director Compensation EMEA & LATAM at Palo Alto Networks, moderated by Andrew Davies, Enterprise Client Leader and Chemicals Co-Leader at Aon.
In a move designed to close the Gender Pay Gap, the European Commission is increasing pay transparency with the Pay Transparency Directive. This directive should be adopted into national law by June 2026, and will require the first group of companies to report in 2027, over the year 2026. The shift towards greater pay transparency is both an opportunity and a challenge for organisations, and preparing for it is going to take time. The most helpful thing a company can do to prepare is to understand the need for change and its role in the process. The next step is to communicate, ensure consistency in messaging, especially to those in leadership positions, and identify change agents. If done well, complying with the new directive can help reinvigorate the company’s total rewards strategy, increase trust, and improve engagement. Time is moving fast, so for companies who haven’t started preparing yet, now is the moment to act.
