If two people do the same work, it is not permissible if one receives lower pay just because he or she has a disability and receives disability pension. Such discrimination represents a violation of the Labour Code as well as the Anti-Discrimination Act. The Labour Code stipulates a duty for the employers to provide the employees with equal pay for equal work. Anti-Discrimination Act prohibits unequal treatment of employees on the grounds of disability. This prohibition also applies to pay, including all parts of the salary – claimable (the basic salary) and non-claimable (bonuses, personal extra pay, etc.).

Such inequality in pay is illustrated by complaints and objections I frequently receive. Typically, these complaints are sent by employees of private security companies and administrative workers who claim that their job tasks, scope and working time distribution are the same as those of their healthy colleagues, but they receive lower pay regardless.

In this connection, the Defender believes it is a serious cause for concern that the inequality in pay is also based on the Government’s own regulation, which stipulates a lower minimum wage for all employees receiving disability pension. She notified the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs of the discriminatory character of Section 4 of the Government Regulation and she also tried, without success, to promote equal pay within the comment procedure concerning the amendment to the Regulation; she also approached the Prime Minister, again without success.

As the Defender is adamant in her reluctance to accept a situation where people with disabilities receive lower pay for the same work, she decided to exercise her special powers and filed an application with the Constitutional Court for annulment of this Section of the Regulation.