Milestone Policy Judgment
Equal pay does not depend on negotiation skills
© Andrey Popov / Adobe Stock
The man simply negotiated better, according to a metal company in Meissen near Dresden, in order to justify the difference in salaries between men and women. A landmark ruling by the Federal Labor Court now rejects this argument: Equal pay does not depend on negotiating skills.
The same salary when hiring – regardless of whether man or woman, the Federal Labor Court in Erfurt has now decided. This regulation also applies if a male applicant achieves a higher salary through negotiation skills. A female applicant should not be paid less in her new job. Otherwise, unequal pay indicates prohibited discrimination based on gender.
Women receive 1,000 euros less salary with the same qualifications
After all, the current lawsuit is about 1,000 euros less salary. The employee Susanne Dumas of a metal company in Meißen near Dresden had complained. At the beginning of her employment in March 2017, she was offered 3,500 euros a month during the probationary period. From November, a performance-related fee should also be paid. Although she agreed, she later discovered that two male colleagues had significantly higher salaries than her. One of the two was hired just three months before her – in the same position – but earned around 1,000 euros more during the probationary period.
Despite the introduction of a collective agreement, the salary difference was still around 500 euros. The 44-year-old asked her employer to adjust wages and pay her a wage supplement. The employer refused and justified this: the man had simply shown better negotiating skills. Both initially received the same offer. Your colleague simply asked for more before signing the contract. In addition, he should have replaced a manager. The company was still successful in the lower courts (labour and state labor court in Saxony) by invoking the principle of freedom of contract.
Federal Labor Court overturns judgment of previous instances
The argument failed before the Federal Labor Court. The 44-year-old plaintiff was awarded EUR 14,500 in addition to discrimination compensation of EUR 2,000. “I am thinking above all of my daughters and of all women in Germany and I am so happy about this milestone,” said Dumas after the hearing.
The employer “disadvantaged the plaintiff because of her gender,” said chairwoman Anja Schlewing. From now on, the employer can no longer justify a salary disadvantage due to gender by better negotiating skills. Likewise, the prospect of a managerial job is not an argument, according to Schlewing.
This judgment is a so-called fundamental decision. These are judgments or resolutions of higher or supreme courts that clarify legal issues of fundamental interest for the first time.
Sources used: tagesschau.de, freiheitsrechte.org, deutschlandfunk.de