Gender Pay Gap Reporting Ireland 2025: What It Means, Who Must Report, and Why It Matters

Equal pay has been a legal right in Ireland for decades, but equality in opportunity and representation still has progress to make. That’s why, this November, thousands of Irish organisations will once again publish their Gender Pay Gap reports.

And for many smaller employers, it will be the first time they do so.

What Gender Pay Gap reporting measures, and what it reveals about your workforce

The Gender Pay Gap measures the average difference in pay between all men and all women in an organisation, regardless of role, seniority, or function.

It’s not a test of whether men and women are paid equally for the same work (that’s already required by law). Instead, it highlights structural imbalances that influence how opportunities are distributed across the workforce, such as:

• Underrepresentation of women in senior or higher-paid roles

• Overrepresentation of women in part-time or lower-paid sectors

• The impact of caregiving, maternity leave, and career breaks

• Unconscious bias or barriers to progression

By making these patterns visible, the reporting process helps organisations understand why gaps exist — and what can be done to close them over time.

Watch our Masterclass recording: Gender Pay Gap Reporting 2025.

Who must report in Ireland 2025 and key deadlines

Under current Irish legislation, all employers with 50 or more employees are now required to publish their Gender Pay Gap data.

• Snapshot date: Any date in June 2025

• Publication deadline: Within five months of your chosen June snapshot date — for example, a June 1st snapshot means a November 1st deadline; a June 30th snapshot means November 30th 2025.

• Where to publish: On your company website and uploaded to the State’s central Gender Pay Gap reporting portal once required.

• Retention: Reports must remain publicly available on your website for three years.

If your organisation meets the 50-employee threshold on your chosen snapshot date, you’re required to publish — even if you don’t have a visible pay gap. You must include employees who are employed on your chosen snapshot date, using their remuneration from the previous 12 months for your calculations.

What to include in your Gender Pay Gap Report 2025

Every report must contain both metrics and context: There are 18-20 metrics depending on the makeup of your workforce. 

The Core metrics:

• The mean and median hourly pay gap

• The mean and median bonus pay gap

• The proportion of male and female employees who received bonuses

• Gender distribution across quartiles (lower, lower-middle, upper-middle, upper pay bands)

Contextual narrative:

• Why the gap exists (e.g., representation, industry norms, part-time ratios)

• What measures have been or will be taken to reduce it

• Any progress or initiatives since the previous report

Tip: Transparency doesn’t mean perfection — it means context. If your data shows a significant gap, the most important step is to explain why and outline your plan to address it.

Benefit-in-kind (e.g., gift cards, company cars) and vouched travel or subsistence reimbursements are not included in pay or bonus figures - only payroll remuneration is used.  There is a BIK metric.

For more information on what to include or exclude in your Gender Pay Gap Report, see our article: Gender Pay Gap Reporting Ireland 2025: Employer FAQ and Step-by-Step Compliance Guide

Why this matters for Irish companies

According to the Central Statistics Office, Ireland’s national gender pay gap stands at 9.6%, compared with an EU average of 12.7%.
That means, on average, women in Ireland earn roughly 90 cents for every euro earned by men - though the gap varies widely between industries.

Sectors such as construction, aviation, and finance tend to show wider gaps due to male-dominated senior roles, while education and healthcare often show the opposite trend.
In many cases, it’s less about pay rates and more about representation at senior levels.

Watch our Masterclass recording: Gender Pay Gap Reporting 2025.

Why reporting matters beyond compliance

Gender Pay Gap reporting isn’t simply a compliance exercise. Done well, it can strengthen an organisation from within.

1. Build trust through transparency
   Publishing your data — and the story behind it — signals openness and accountability. Employees and jobseekers increasingly expect this level of transparency from employers.

2. Strengthen culture and engagement
   Recognising where imbalances exist helps foster more inclusive career pathways and leadership pipelines. When employees see fair systems, engagement and retention improve.

3. Enhance your employer brand
   Companies that communicate their progress attract a wider pool of talent. Organisations like Deloitte and Uniphar have used their reports to demonstrate real, measurable progress — from increasing female leadership representation to introducing targeted mentorship and return-to-work programmes.

4. Prepare for new pay transparency laws
   The forthcoming EU Pay Transparency Directive will require employers to publish salary ranges in job postings and prohibit asking for salary history — making accurate pay data more essential than ever. Ireland must transpose this directive by June 2026.

How to prepare your report

Even for smaller organisations, a structured approach will make reporting smoother each year.

1. Choose your June snapshot date early.
   This allows time to gather and validate payroll data.

2. Bring HR, finance, and leadership together.
   Reporting is a cross-functional task — data must be accurate, but so must the narrative.

3. Use your payroll system or templates.
   Many systems can export pay data for the required calculations.
   If you use spreadsheets, be consistent with formulas and employee categories year on year.

4. Write your narrative carefully.
   Explain the ‘why’ behind the numbers but avoid over-promising actions that may be hard to sustain next year.

5. Keep your report accessible for three years.
   Treat it like an annual publication - review it each year to track progress.

From Obligation to Opportunity

Transparency isn’t always easy, but it drives progress. While the Gender Pay Gap report began as a compliance requirement, many Irish organisations now view it as a catalyst for meaningful change.

The data provides a mirror: showing where progress has been made and where barriers remain.

By engaging openly with that picture, employers can move beyond numbers to build cultures where everyone - regardless of gender - has equal opportunity to thrive.

• For more information on what to include or exclude in your Gender Pay Gap Report, see our article: Gender Pay Gap Reporting Ireland 2025: Employer FAQ and Step-by-Step Compliance Guide

• Or for full guidance on Gender Pay Gap Reporting 2025, watch our Masterclass recording: Gender Pay Gap Reporting 2025.