OREANDA-NEWS.  March 18, 2014. Although the Estonian government is obligated to adjust the budget to reduce the pay gap, it has failed to do it so far, a report published earlier this month by the European Institute for Gender Equality shows.

The raport names two stragglers who have not fixed their budgets - Estonia and Denmark, Postimees reported.

While Denmark places 13th in terms of pay gap, Estonia with its largest pay gap has been in the last spot for years.

Estonian MEP Siir Oviir says that tackling the pay gap cannot be left to employees alone and suggests that salary figures be made public.

“When the problem is as great as it is in Estonia, it has become a public concern and it outweighs the employer’s wish not to disclose salary numbers,” Oviir said.

According to Oviir, the main problem is that even though the salary paid by the employer must be equivalent regardless of gender, it has so far not been defined what “equivalent” means.

The sixth women’s congress in Estonia last week said that the gender equality law, which has been in force for ten years, is being ignored because of ignorance or a clear lack of political will.

The action plan of the outgoing government states vaguely that the situation must be analyzed, and no party has raised the issue in the talks for the new government. During the tenure of Andrus Ansip, Estonia fell 30 places in the world ranking, placing 59th.