Recently, SAPIENS’s Leading Researcher Associate Professor Marta Andhov and Bergþór Bergsson (Assistant attorney, DLA Piper) published the article “Equal Pay and EU Public Procurement Law – Case Study of Mandatory Icelandic ÍST85 Standard” in the Nordic Journal of European Law Issue, Volume 4(1). The journal “promotes knowledge and research in European law in the Nordic countries as well as creates a platform and a community for researchers and practitioners in different European law-related fields.”

Chapter Abstract

From 2018, it became mandatory to obtain the Icelandic Equal Pay Standard (ÍST85) for all companies with 25+ employees annually operating on the Icelandic market. It has been unclear to what extent – if any – the ÍST85 can be applied in public procurements. This article analyses whether the ÍST85 is compliant with the relevant European Union internal market law, particularly public procurement law. The growing intensity of nudges to include and verify social elements in public procurements can be observed throughout the EU. The analysis of the Islandic case study bears relevance as it can be applied to the EU Member States and other EEA/EFTA States, contemplating similar approaches in their procurements. Section 1 introduces ÍST85. Section 2 analyses the relationship between EEA and EU law, showcasing that this article’s analytical outcomes provide lessons applicable beyond Iceland. Section 3 examines how equal pay is regulated under EU law. Section 4 conducts an internal market analysis of ÍST85 compliance by examining the Treaties provisions on free movement. Section 5 introduces the EU public procurement law and examines ÍST85 compliance with Directive 2014/24/EU. Section 6 tests the application of ÍST85 to the Posted Workers Directive. Section 7 concludes the article.

The article is fully available here Nordic Journal of European Law Issue 2021