Equal pay: the canton launches a pilot phase of controls

Trusting is good. Verifying is better. Especially when it comes to equal pay for men and women. At least, that's the choice the canton of Valais is making this year by delving into the pay slips of five companies operating on its territory that were awarded a cantonal public contract in 2024. As a reminder, women earn on average 16.2% less than men in Switzerland, and this gap can only be partially explained.

This external audit aims to ensure that employers comply with equal pay, in accordance with the Constitution and the Federal Equality Act (LEg). Currently, candidates for public contracts must provide a sworn statement, and only those with more than 100 employees are required to attach additional proof. However, Valais wants to go further: this additional audit could lead to corrective measures if unjustified discrepancies are found.

If successful, the Valais pilot project could be extended to subsidized companies as early as 2026. In the canton of Vaud, similar audits were conducted by random selection until last year. Since this year, the audited companies have been "chosen" from a panel deemed more "risky." This means that women are already few in number and therefore more likely to be disadvantaged in terms of pay. A review will be conducted at a later date.

At the federal level, since 2020, the law has required companies with more than 100 employees to have gender pay equality analyzed within their ranks. But by its own admission, the Confederation is struggling to enforce this standard , which does not provide for any sanctions in the event of irregularities. A readjustment could therefore take place in 2027.