Littler Global Guide Quarterly Legal News
The Global Guide Quarterly (GGQ) is Littler’s quarterly newsletter offering updates on key labor and employment law developments across the Americas, APAC, and EMEA. Read the Danish news for the first quarter of the year below, and find the full guide on Littler.com.
New Law Aims to Ensure Better Gender Balance in Management
On January 1, 2025, a new law on gender balance in management went into effect. The law implements the EU’s Gender Equality Directive and requires companies to set measurable targets and processes for achieving gender balance in management of publicly listed companies. The new rules apply to all publicly listed companies unless the company 1) has fewer than 250 employees and 2) does not exceed either an annual revenue of 50 million euros or an annual balance sheet total of 43 million euros in a financial year. Only companies that meet both criteria will be exempt.
Companies covered by the new law must ensure a balanced gender distribution in management, which is achieved if at least 40% but not more than 49% of management employees are members of the underrepresented gender. Additionally, the law imposes several other obligations on the affected companies, including fines for violations of the rules.
New Law Allows Contractor Stop at Construction Sites and Increased Fine Levels
On March 27, 2025, the Danish Parliament passed a bill to strengthen efforts against social dumping in Danish workplaces. The new law aims to strengthen the Danish Working Environment Authority’s enforcement powers and thus serve as an additional incentive for companies on construction sites to prioritize the working environment. The law allows the Danish Working Environment Authority to issue an order to stop all work by contractors and subcontractors at a construction site (a so-called contractor stop). This measure can be applied if several companies repeatedly ignore orders from the authority and/or commit serious violations of occupational health and safety regulations. In addition, the law includes an increase in fines for companies that commit serious occupational health and safety violations.
Advocate General Calls for Annulment of EU Wage Directive
As mentioned in the previous Global Guide Quarterly, Denmark filed an action with the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in 2023 to annul the Directive on Adequate Minimum Wages (the Directive) under the provisions of the EU Treaties. On January 14, 2025, the Advocate General of the CJEU issued an opinion asserting that the EU lacks the competence to legislate on wage issues. The Advocate General emphasized that the Directive’s aim to regulate “wage conditions” conflicts with EU law, specifically Article 153 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, which excludes pay-related issues from EU legislative authority. Consequently, the Advocate General concluded that the Directive on Adequate Minimum Wages should be annulled in its entirety because it conflicts with the EU’s treaty framework.
The outcome of the case has not yet been decided. It is important to note that the Advocate General’s opinion is not binding on the CJEU, but it can significantly impact the final decision. Ultimately, the decision rests with the CJEU.
Read more employment law news from Q1 2025 from offices including, but not limited to, Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, Egypt, France, Hungary, Malaysia, Mexico, Morocco, Mozambique, Nigeria, Norway, Peru, Poland, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden, Turkey, Venezuela and Vietnam, in our newly launched Littler Global Guide Quarterly (Q1).
