Lula sanctions equal pay bill for men and women

Work laws

CLT prohibits wage differences between men and women with the same function or activity. Requirement, however, is not met

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) sanctions, this Monday (3), the project for equal pay between men and women with the same job or the same function.

The proposal was sent by the government to the National Congress in March this year. The project was approved by the Federal Senate, in June, and received the endorsement of the Chamber of Deputies, in May. The sanction should be published in the Official Gazette (DOU) in the coming days.

According to a survey by the consultancy IDados, which was based on the National Household Sample Survey by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), women earn about 20% less than men in Brazil.

The Consolidation of Labor Laws (CLT) prohibits the wage difference between men and women who occupy the same function or carry out the same activity. In practice, however, the requirement is not met.

What does the project say?

The proposal, one of President Lula’s campaign promises, was presented by the federal government in March of this year. According to the text, which amends the Consolidation of Labor Laws (CLT), men and women who perform the same function must receive, obligatorily, the same salary.

In addition, the project stipulates that, in cases of proven discrimination based on gender, race or ethnicity, in addition to the salary differences due, a fine will be paid, the value of which will be equivalent to the highest salary paid by the employer, multiplied by 10 times. In case of recurrence, the fine doubles.

Even with the payment of the fine, the project also establishes that the employee who is the target of discrimination will still be entitled to compensation for moral damages.

remuneration x salary

During the course of the project in the Senate, there were disagreements about the term “remuneration”, which appeared in the text of the proposal.

For some parliamentarians, it was not fair to match the remuneration of professionals who have different CVs, regardless of gender.

After the debate, the bill’s rapporteur, Teresa Leitão (PT-PE), proposed replacing the term “remuneration” with “remuneration criteria”, an amendment that was approved by the other senators.

*With information from

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