Good practice

Ley Irlandesa de Información sobre la Brecha Salarial de Género (2021)

Ireland · Dublin · See the Ireland profile

La ley irlandesa de 2021 impone informes anuales sobre la brecha salarial de género a los empleadores con 250 o más trabajadores; en el primer ciclo (diciembre de 2022), más de 500 empresas declararon una brecha media del 12,6% y mediana del 8,37%, creando la primera base de evidencia jurídicamente vinculante del país en materia de equidad salarial.

500+

Empresas que divulgaron datos (Dec 2022)

12.6%

Brecha salarial de género media (2022)

8.37%

Brecha salarial de género mediana (2022)

Ley Irlandesa de Información sobre la Brecha Salarial de Género (2021)

Details

Maturity: Established
Promoter: Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY)
Period: 2021-present
Keywords: gender pay gap, pay transparency, equal pay, employment law, mandatory reporting

Context

La Ley de Información sobre la Brecha Salarial de Género de Irlanda, de 2021, obliga a los empleadores a informar anualmente de su brecha salarial de género.

Results

En el primer ciclo (diciembre de 2022), más de 500 empresas divulgaron una brecha media del 12,6 % y mediana del 8,37 %, creando la primera base de evidencia jurídicamente vinculante del país en materia de igualdad salarial.

Implementation

Implementation detail (cost, timeline, staffing, conditions for success) is not yet available for this practice.

Data sources

Where this practice's information was retrieved from, and when.

C-NAPSE web research — accessed 2026-06-21
Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY) — accessed 2026-06-21
Irish Statute Book — Gender Pay Gap Information Act 2021 — accessed 2026-06-21
PwC Ireland — Gender Pay Gap Reporting Analysis 2023 — accessed 2026-06-21
KPMG Law Ireland — Gender Pay Gap Reporting — accessed 2026-06-21

Attachments

Source image

Quality score: 96/100

How is this calculated?

Evidence: Observational / pre–post

Top 4% in this catalogue (719 scored practices)

Scores cluster high, so position within the catalogue is often more telling than the number alone.

Evaluation

Evaluated by C-NAPSE

Score profile — the dimensions behind the score — how it's computed

Transferability / replicability2/3

Modelled on the UK's 2017 mandatory reporting framework and closely studied by other smaller EU member states considering similar legislation; the phased threshold design (250→150→50 employees) is a widely replicable model.

Impact on gender equality1/1

First reporting cycle (December 2022) created Ireland's first legally binding national pay gap evidence base: mean gap 12.6%, median 8.37%, bonus gap 38.5% — structural inequalities quantified and made publicly accountable for the first time.

Effectiveness1/1

The Act delivered its stated objective: 500+ employers with 250+ staff published legally required reports by December 2022; threshold subsequently lowered to 150+ employees in 2024, demonstrating iterative policy effectiveness.

Efficiency1/1

Low administrative burden — companies publish on a public portal; reporting methodology standardised by government regulation; high transparency-to-resource ratio relative to effect on pay gap accountability.

Evaluated outcomes1/1

PwC Ireland independent 2023 analysis of first reporting cycle; KPMG Law Ireland annual compliance guide; academic paper in the Economic and Social Review (ESR) — multiple independent evaluations of first-year data.

Sustainability1/1

Permanent legislation with annually recurring mandatory reporting; threshold progressively lowered (250→150→planned 50 employees); embedded in Irish employment law framework; government committed to full rollout.

Achievement / evidence1/1

Over 500 companies reported by December 2022; mean gap 12.6% and median 8.37% documented; threshold lowered to 150+ employees in 2024 — phased rollout on schedule with concrete, expanding coverage.

Gender-mainstreaming embedding1/1

Structurally integrates gender pay equity analysis into annual corporate governance and public-facing accountability for all large Irish employers across all sectors, public and private.

Curator validation1/1

Irish Statute Book (official legal text), PwC Ireland analysis (Big Four audit firm), KPMG Law Ireland — all credible, independent, and publicly verifiable sources on multiple domains.

Cite this

Evidoria. Ley Irlandesa de Información sobre la Brecha Salarial de Género (2021). Persistent ID: 3f8b0ed7-07ec-4a98-b81f-2523eeda8e07.

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