A valuation system for equal pay

The project to develop a value assessment system for equal pay is being carried out at the level of a professional board in accordance with an agreement between the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs and the Equal Pay Office. The professional board is working on the creation, testing and formulation of procedures for the use of a new value assessment system, which is intended to ensure that employees who perform equally valuable jobs receive equal pay and benefits, regardless of gender or other non-material variables.

All work is guided by the goals of equal pay, quality of public services and strategic human resource management in accordance with law, collective agreements and international obligations. The project is a collaborative project between representatives of employers and the general association of employees working for the state, and decisions are made unanimously . 

Towards the end of 2020, the Prime Minister appointed a working group to reassess the value of women's work and tasked it with submitting proposals for actions to eliminate the gender pay gap in the labour market. The group submitted proposals almost a year later, including the establishment of an action group on equal pay, with the participation of social partners. Subsequently, an action group was appointed and launched a development project in collaboration with four government agencies and the Equal Pay Agency . The project was to identify undervalued aspects of work and develop tools to support employers in ensuring equal pay for work of equal value.

To facilitate the conclusion of collective agreements in 2024, the Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs signed declarations on measures to combat the gender pay gap. Subsequently, a steering committee on job valuation was appointed with the participation of social partners, to develop a comprehensive valuation system in accordance with law, collective agreements and international obligations. In early 2025, an agreement was made with the Equal Pay Office to develop such a system, and in the spring of 2025, the professional board of the project was appointed with representatives from ASÍ, BHM, BSRB, KÍ and the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs.

A steering group oversees the project and ensures that its progress is in line with the goals of the Equality Act, which states that women, men, and people with a neutral gender registration in the National Register should be paid equal wages and enjoy the same benefits for the same or equally valuable work.

A professional board oversees the development of the value assessment system from beginning to end, which includes defining the project, organizing education and dissemination, defining the structure of job analyses and creating job profiles, and selecting assessment factors.

The State Project Office is a unit within the Equal Pay Office and works for a professional board on all aspects of the project.