The Fair Pay Workplace (FPW) organization has certified Outokumpu, a manufacturer of sustainable stainless steel, for its efforts to ensure sustainable, fair pay throughout the company.
Gender-equitable compensation
At Outokumpu, women earned an average of 0.986 euros for every euro a man earned at the end of 2023, representing a gender income gap of 1.4 percent but an improvement on the previous year (2022: 0.97 euros). Compensation for similar positions, qualifications and experience have been taken into account in these figures. Without adjusting for these factors, women at Outokumpu earned an average of 1.13 euros compared to every euro of male colleagues.
This reflects the structural differences between genders by job type at Outokumpu. A large proportion of Outokumpu's employees work in male-dominated industrial roles in the production facilities; Women work at Outokumpu predominantly in commercial functions and administrative tasks. For comparison: The general gender income gap in the EU was 12.7 percent in 2022. Outokumpu is the first company in the stainless steel industry and one of the few in Europe to receive this official certificate from the FPW.
“Gender equal pay is an integral part of the strategic goals to promote diversity, equality and inclusion, which Outokumpu implemented together with the Supervisory Board in 2022. We have been investing in fair pay practices for many years and have worked with FPW to review and independently audit the impact of our efforts to achieve fair gender pay models. We have now reached a point where we can guarantee systematic and transparent measurements and measures to ensure gender-equitable compensation today and in the future. Closing the gender income gap is not a one-time affair. Rather, we must constantly keep an eye on them in order not to drift into the unequal treatment that continues to prevail in the labor market. We are very proud of our designation as a “Fair Pay” workplace, but we are also aware that there is still a lot of attention ahead of us,” explains Johann Steiner, Executive Vice President for Sustainability, Human Resources and Communications at Outokumpu.
Certification
The “Fair Pay Workplace” certification is based on transparent and trustworthy regulations and standards, developed by leading independent industry experts from science, law and business to recognize organizations that are committed to meaningful gender-equitable compensation. The FPW Certification Program works with the world's leading companies across all industries to achieve equal pay for equal work, attract and retain the best talent, and create an equitable future for all.
“All employees deserve to have a fair and equitable experience in the workplace and we know that fair pay models are a central part of this. The certification is tangible evidence of our commitment to fostering an environment in which everyone is treated fairly and given the best opportunity to thrive. Annual re-certification underscores our promise to consistently track these efforts over time,” says Steiner.
Fair Pay Workplace
Fair Pay Workplace, founded in 2020 and supported by the Syndio technology platform, certifies organizations according to regulations and standards for gender-equitable compensation, developed by a panel of experts from forward-looking companies, science, human resources and the legal sector.
