Equal pay analysis (Logib, art. 4a Gender Equality Act)

Every Swiss company with at least 100 employees at the start of the financial year must have an equal pay analysis carried out by a statutory auditor, pursuant to art. 4a of the Federal Act on Gender Equality (GEA). The official, free tool made available by the Confederation for this analysis is called Logib.

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Where the analysis reveals a confirmed pay gap between women and men, the company must repeat it every four years, until the gap is closed. This obligation, specific to Swiss law, is distinct from the pay transparency obligations that otherwise exist under French and EU law, which rest on different indicators and reporting thresholds.

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Failing to comply carries no direct criminal penalty in Switzerland, but exposes the company to a growing reputational and contractual risk: clients or institutional investors now routinely build this type of check into their own engagement criteria, bringing this social obligation closer to the compliance requirements covered by sustainability standards, as detailed in our article on CSRD and sustainability due diligence.

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In HR financial due diligence of a Swiss target with more than 100 staff, verifying that this Logib analysis was actually carried out, and its result, is a compliance point often overlooked that can nonetheless expose a buyer to a latent social liability if left unaddressed before closing.