The Chamber of Commerce warns employers. Make sure you meet equal pay, he calls

Regional wage differences are a reality in the market environment, states HK. The verdict of the Supreme Court was analyzed. “We recommend all employers who operate throughout the country and have wage disparities in the same positions between regions to carefully check whether there are objective reasons for such differences, which the regulation affects,” the chamber told the daily E15 exclusively.

Due to such differences, the Czech Post is now facing hundreds of new lawsuits, the filing of which will be mediated by the SOS 21 trade union. However, the same fate may befall many other employers. According to the valid Labor Code, they have to pay the same high wage to all employees for the same work, regardless of where they perform it in the Czech Republic.

HK discourages the payment of higher wages in Prague or larger cities than in smaller municipalities. “It is not a suitable tool for compensating for different levels of living costs,” he says. In addition, inequalities can arise for employees living in a poor region and commuting from there to work in a rich region.

“If the employer is interested in taking into account the living costs of employees, he should use other tools outside the salary without unjustified differences in wages – for example in the form of housing allowance,” said HK President Vladimír Dlouhý.

“Employers who do not pay equal wages should have a thorough argument for such a procedure,” warned the vice-president of HK and the president of the Trade and Tourism Association Tomáš Prouza. However, he reminded that the said judgment does not deprive the right to take into account the performance of employees or other criteria. These can be legally valued, for example, in the form of wage bonuses.

–

The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, led by Jana Maláčová (ČSSD), does not intend to change the legislation taking into account equal wages; the CMKOS departments have long defended the current regulation. “The MLSA does not consider the above-mentioned judgment to be a turning point, as it is fully in line with the valid legal regulation of remuneration of employees for work and its interpretation,” said Andrea Vašáková, a spokeswoman for the ministry, earlier.

“The above-standard influence of trade union lobbyists on the ministry paralyzes the efforts of employers and professionals to make the labor market more flexible. Expert opinions are suppressed by demagogic explanations of the steps taken by the government, “criticizes HK. She referred, for example, to last year’s abolition of the waiting period. According to HK, if the new definition of equal pay for work in the future occurs, the Czechia should be inspired by the older EU member states.

–