The Equal Pay Act is on its way – start preparing in time!

We wrote about the Equal Pay Act before in this article.

Guidance from the Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment

The Dutch Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment has now developed guidance for employers to help them get started. This guidance includes a checklist that supports employers in developing what is known as a pay structure. In the Dutch context, this refers to a structured system for job evaluation, job classification and pay levels. The guidance can be downloaded from the website of the Dutch central government.

The checklist explains step by step how employers can start drafting and implementing a pay structure. Implementing such a structure also requires specific HR expertise. Our HR consultants at HR Services can support employers with this process.

Please note: this guidance is intended as inspiration and provides practical tools to help employers get started. No rights can be derived from it as proof of compliance with European legislation.

Pay transparency dashboard

In practice, it is not always easy to obtain quick and clear insight into possible salary differences between men and women.

CROP HR Services has developed a new dashboard that enables employers to analyse the gender pay gap within their organisation in a clear and accessible way. The dashboard shows at a glance how the salaries of men and women compare, both at job level and at organisational level.

With this dashboard, employers can, among other things:

• Make salary differences between men and women transparent;
• Carry out analyses by job category or job level;
• Identify trends and deviations;
• Take targeted action to reduce any unjustified differences.

The dashboard provides a clear and user-friendly overview, allowing organisations to quickly see where potential differences exist and which steps are needed to work towards a fair and transparent remuneration policy.

Would you like to know more about this? Please contact one of our HR consultants.

The EU Directive may already have consequences in 2026

The European Pay Transparency Directive had to be transposed into national law by EU Member States by 7 June 2026. The Netherlands previously indicated that it needed more time and, for that reason, postponed the intended entry into force of the new Dutch legislation to 1 January 2027. However, because EU Member States were required to comply with the Directive from 7 June 2026, this may already have consequences for employers.

Many employers are currently preparing their organisations for the new legislation. Employees may potentially start asking employers questions from 7 June 2026, as the EU rules should have been implemented by Member States by that date. Employers would therefore be wise to start developing a pay structure sooner rather than later, to avoid being caught off guard.

Need help?

Do you need support with developing and implementing a pay structure, or would you like insight into salary inequalities within your organisation? Please contact our colleagues at HR Services. Would you like to receive advice on this topic? Feel free to send your question to hradvies@crop.nl. We would be happy to think along with you.