Yes. Employers with fewer than 100 workers are not generally outside the EU Pay Transparency Directive. The 100-worker threshold is primarily a threshold for mandatory gender pay gap reporting under Article 9. Employers below that level can still be subject to recruitment transparency, worker pay-information rights, equal-pay and pay-structure requirements, and enforcement rules. Article 9 also says that Member States must not prevent employers with fewer than 100 workers from reporting voluntarily and may require smaller employers to report under national law.
Jurisdiction: European Union
National law may require smaller employers to report
Fewer Than 100 Workers Does Not Mean Outside the Directive
The Directive's general scope is not written as a rule that begins only when an employer reaches 100 workers. Article 2 applies to employers in the public and private sectors and to workers who meet the relevant employment-relationship test. The 100-worker figure appears in the reporting framework, not as a general gateway to every right and duty. A smaller employer should therefore avoid using headcount as the first and only scope question. It should identify which obligations apply regardless of reporting size and then separately assess whether Article 9 reporting is mandatory.
The 100-Worker Line Is Mainly an Article 9 Reporting Threshold
Article 9 establishes recurring gender pay gap reporting for employers with at least 100 workers, using staged start dates and frequencies. Employers with 100 to 149 workers first enter the Directive-level reporting timetable in 2031. Employers below 100 workers are not placed into that mandatory EU reporting timetable by the Directive itself. That distinction is important because reporting is only one part of the framework. A small employer may have no Article 9 filing obligation under the EU minimum while still needing compliant recruitment practices, worker information procedures and objective pay structures.
Recruitment Transparency Can Still Apply
A small employer recruiting one person can still encounter the Directive's applicant-facing rules. Article 5 requires pay information to be provided to applicants in the manner set by the framework and prevents employers from asking applicants about their pay history. These requirements are not drafted as benefits reserved for applicants to employers with at least 100 workers. Smaller employers should therefore review vacancy wording, salary-range approval, interview scripts, application forms and recruiter instructions even if they will not submit an Article 9 gender pay gap report under the Directive-level timetable.
Existing Workers Can Still Have Pay Information Rights
The Directive also gives workers rights relating to pay information and the criteria used to determine pay and pay progression. Those rights should not be confused with employer-level recurring reporting. A worker request concerns the individual's employment relationship and relevant categories of workers, while Article 9 reporting concerns specified organisation-level gender pay gap information. A small employer should therefore be able to identify worker categories, explain pay-setting criteria where required and respond through the procedure established by the applicable national law even where the employer is below the Article 9 threshold.
Voluntary Reporting Is Allowed Below 100 Workers
Article 9 expressly states that Member States must not prevent employers with fewer than 100 workers from providing the Article 9 information voluntarily. An employer might choose voluntary reporting for governance, workforce trust, investor expectations or preparation for growth. Voluntary reporting should still be approached carefully. The employer should use a consistent methodology, understand the worker population being measured and avoid presenting figures in a way that could mislead employees or other readers. Voluntary reporting is an option, not a substitute for understanding the other obligations that already apply.
National Law May Require More From Small Employers
The Directive permits Member States to require employers with fewer than 100 workers to provide pay information under national law. That means the EU-level threshold cannot safely be treated as a universal small-business exemption across the Union. A business operating in several Member States should check each national implementation separately. The review should identify whether a lower reporting threshold exists, whether existing national gender pay reporting rules continue to apply, which authority receives information and whether the country has additional transparency requirements that go beyond the Directive's minimum standard.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do employers with 99 workers have to report under Article 9?
The Directive itself does not place employers with fewer than 100 workers in the mandatory Article 9 reporting timetable, but national law may require smaller employers to report.
Can an employer with fewer than 100 workers report voluntarily?
Yes. Article 9 states that Member States must not prevent employers with fewer than 100 workers from providing the specified pay information voluntarily.
Do recruitment transparency rules still matter below 100 workers?
Yes. The reporting threshold should not be treated as a general exemption from applicant transparency and other Directive obligations.
Related Guides
Official Sources
Requirements and practices differ by jurisdiction and organisation. Check current local law, official guidance and professional advice for a specific situation.