HR consultancy service
Pay structures and pay transparency
Pay bands, job levels and gender pay gap reports for Irish employers, with clear preparation for the EU Pay Transparency Directive and pay decisions you can explain.
What it is
Pay in a growing business tends to be set one hire at a time. Someone was scarce, someone negotiated hard, someone has been on the same rate for years, and now two people doing similar work are paid differently and nobody can say why. That used to be an awkward conversation. It is now a compliance question too. Under the Gender Pay Gap Information Act 2021, employers with 50 or more employees must publish a gender pay gap report every year, and the EU Pay Transparency Directive will, once Ireland legislates for it, require employers to tell candidates the pay range and show staff how pay is set.
We help you put order on it. We group your roles into job levels, build pay bands from your own payroll data and the market sources you choose, find the gaps that cannot be explained and agree a plan to close them over time. We prepare your gender pay gap report and the statement that goes with it, and we tell you plainly what is law in Ireland as of October 2026 and what is still only proposed.
The HR practice is led by a consultant with a master's degree in human resource management. Scope, fee and timings are agreed in writing before any work starts.
What you get
- A job levels framework that groups your roles by responsibility, skill and scope
- Pay bands for each level, built from your payroll data and agreed market sources
- An equal pay check showing gaps between people doing like work, with the reasons recorded
- A gender pay gap report with every required figure and the statement of reasons and measures
- A readiness plan for the EU Pay Transparency Directive, updated when Irish legislation is published
- A briefing for managers on explaining pay decisions to staff and candidates
Questions
What employers ask us.
General information for Irish employers, checked against official sources in October 2026.
FH Recruitment provides HR advice and practical support. We are not a law firm and we do not give legal advice. Where a matter needs a solicitor we will tell you, and we are happy to work alongside yours.
Is the EU Pay Transparency Directive law in Ireland yet?
Not yet in full. Directive (EU) 2023/970 gave member states until 7 June 2026 to transpose it, and the Department of Children, Disability and Equality confirmed on gov.ie on 18 June 2026 that Ireland had not completed transposition by that date. It said implementation would be phased and that employers would not be penalised for not having every element in place in June 2026. The Government Legislation Programme for Autumn 2026 lists a Pay Transparency Bill with heads still in preparation. So, as of October 2026, the Directive's new duties are not yet Irish law, although gender pay gap reporting and existing equal pay rules already apply.
Do we have to put a salary range in job adverts, and can we ask candidates about their current pay?
As of October 2026, no Irish law requires a pay range in an advert or forbids the pay history question. Both are expected. Article 5 of the Pay Transparency Directive entitles applicants to the starting pay or its range, for example in the vacancy notice or before interview, and says employers shall not ask about pay history. The General Scheme of the Equality (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill, published on gov.ie in January 2025, would require the range in the advert itself (Head 4) and ban pay history questions (Head 5). It has not been enacted. We recommend building pay bands now, so publishing a range later is a small step.
Who has to publish a gender pay gap report in Ireland, and when?
Employers with 50 or more employees. Regulations made in 2025 under the gender pay gap legislation (S.I. No. 212 of 2025) lowered the threshold from 150 to 50 and cut the reporting window from six months to five. According to gov.ie, as of October 2026, employers pick a snapshot date in June and must report by the end of November 2026, publishing on their own website and submitting through the Gender Pay Gap Portal. The Bill to put the portal requirement on a statutory footing was listed for priority publication in the Government Legislation Programme for Autumn 2026, so check gov.ie before you file.
We have fewer than 50 employees. Does pay transparency apply to us?
Partly. According to Citizens Information, equal pay for like work is a term of every employment contract under the Employment Equality Acts 1998 to 2015, and a claim can be made on any of the nine grounds. Gender pay gap reporting starts at 50 employees, as of October 2026. The Directive's rule on pay information for candidates has no size threshold, and Article 6 lets member states exempt employers with fewer than 50 workers only from sharing pay progression criteria. We give HR advice, not legal advice. Where an equal pay complaint is made, we prepare the analysis and paperwork and work alongside your solicitor.
What does a pay structure or gender pay gap project cost?
It depends on the scope: the number of employees and distinct roles, the state of your payroll data, and whether you want job levels and pay bands, a gender pay gap report, or both. After the first call we set out the scope, the fee and the timings in writing, including who supplies which data and by when. No work starts until you have agreed that document, and any later change to the scope or fee is agreed in writing in the same way.
Talk it through with an HR consultant.
Tell us what is happening. We will contact you within one working day, and no work starts until you have agreed a written scope and fee.