Legal Notice 112 of 2025 was published at the end of June 2025 to amend the Transparent and Predictable Working Conditions Regulations (S.L. 452.216 of the Laws of Malta) further transposing (though not yet completely) the provisions of the EU Pay Transparency Directive (Directive (EU) 2023/970) into Maltese Law.

The main amendments that the Legal Notice brings into focus and effect within the domestic employment context are the following:

1. Applicants for Employment[i] have the right to receive from their prospective employer information about:
   1. the initial pay, or its range, to be attributed to the position concerned; and
   2. where applicable, the relevant pay provisions of the collective agreement in relation to the position.

The Prospective Employer has an obligation to provide this information to all candidates being considered for employment without any distinction. 

2. Employees shall have the right to request (in writing) from the employer, at any time during their employment, (i) the individual pay level and (ii) the pay levels for categories of workers performing the same work as them. The employer is obliged to provide such information requested by the employee within a reasonable period of time but in any event not exceeding two (2) months from the date on which the employee’s request in writing is made.

These amendments enter into force within two months from the date of publication (27^th June 2025) and it is mandatory for employers and HR departments to gear up for these new obligations that are quite onerous of employers

The EU Pay Transparency Directive aims to reduce the gender pay gap as well as strengthen the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal value across the European Union. Its scope is quite broad and applies to both public and private sector employers and to all workers with an employment contract or relationship, including job applicants.

The two employee rights introduced by L.N. 112 of 2025 are considered amongst the most significant changes introduced by the Pay Transparency Directive, and they really shift the balance toward greater openness and fairness in the workplace.

The first ensures prospective employees can make informed decisions about a job without being disadvantaged by prior salary history or pay secrecy. By mandating transparency before employment starts, it helps curb pay discrimination from the outset.

The second provision empowers current employees. The ability to request pay data for comparable roles arms individuals with real, actionable information. It’s not just a right—it’s a tool for accountability. Employers are also now on a clock: they must respond within two months.

These changes are part of a wider cultural shift toward openness about compensation. One ought to note that L.N. 112 of 2025 falls short of introducing the prospective right envisaged under the Directive, that is, for employees to know the pay levels of the category/ies of workers who are performing “work of equal value”; L.N. 112 of 2025 seems to only limit the right to compare with employees performing the “same work”.

Under the Directive, and under existing Maltese laws, there is a stark difference between employees who perform the “same work”, and employees who do not perform the same work but perform “work of equal value”. It is typically understood that employees who perform the same work will fall within one category, whereas employees who do not perform the same work but perform work of equal value will be deemed to fall in a separate but “comparable” category; ‘Comparable’ because under Maltese law, employees who perform the same work and employees who perform work of equal value, have the right to be paid equal pay (subject to some parameters).  One presumes that this distinction, as well as a definition of the term “category”, will be introduced through further amendments in the coming months.

The EU Pay Transparency Directive must be fully transposed by June 2026.

 

Dr. Stephan Gauci

Managing Director