Clifford Chance

Admissibility of regionalization of wages "in light of" CJEU judgment C-624/19

25 October 2021

The judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union ("CJEU") in the case of Tesco Stores Ltd (case C-624/19) (the "Judgment"), concerning equal pay in various employment establishments, caused quite a stir among employers, trade unions and lawyers. There have been many articles and statements in the Polish press indicating that the Judgment allegedly prohibits an employer from differentiating the level of remuneration of employees in different towns/cities solely on the basis of objective economic criteria.

A similar view also results from the position of 20 September 2021 of the Chief Labour Inspectorate ("GIP"). Meanwhile, a reading of the Judgment itself and the opinions of European legal scholars leads to the conclusion that the Judgment does not relate to this issue and does not have the revolutionary nature that is attributed to it. However, it may have significant consequences in another matter – wage differentiation by formally separate employers that are controlled by the same entity. 

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