At PMI, we see equal pay for equal work between men and women as the baseline standard for equality. We have confirmed that our actual pay practices match our good intentions with the Global EQUAL-SALARY Certification.

The EQUAL-SALARY Foundation is an independent, non-profit organization based in Switzerland. The EQUAL-SALARY Certification verifies that organizations have sustainable policies and practices to ensure that they pay their male and female employees equally for equal work.

Achieving EQUAL-SALARY certification is an important building block on the road to creating a more inclusive, gender-balanced workplace.

Mimi Kurniawan, Chief Diversity Officer, Philip Morris International
Creating an organization that is truly diverse, equal, and inclusive is an essential building block of our vision for a smoke-free future.
Mimi Kurniawan, Chief Diversity Officer, Philip Morris International

A rigorous, third-party validation on equal pay

EQUAL-SALARY Certification includes more than a simple comparison of salary data to ensure we pay men and women equally for equal work—it’s a process that includes multiple steps:

Step 1

Salary analysis

Step 2

HQ visit

Step 3

On-site audits

Step 4

Global certification

Step 5

Monitoring audits

PMI submits its Compensation Data, i.e. all the relevant data which might impact the determination of salaries for female and male employees, and Compensation Documents, i.e. policies and other documents that relate to the Compensation Data in each country.  

PwC, the Foundation’s entrusted auditor, conducts a series of interviews at PMI to gather information about:

a. senior leadership commitment to the EQUAL-SALARY principles

b. PMI’s global People & Culture (P&C) management and strategy

c. the resources, processes, and indicators in place to drive fair remuneration across the globe

On-site audits take place in PMI affiliates around the world to evaluate:

a. management’s commitment to equal remuneration between men and women

b. the integration of EQUAL-SALARY principles in all P&C processes and policies

c. employee perceptions of gender equality in the organization

After fulfilling these steps, PMI will receive Global EQUAL-SALARY Certification, and may communicate about this achievement both internally and externally.

Further audits take place two and three years after the certification to:

a. confirm PMI’s ongoing commitment to a fair, non-discriminatory wage practice between men and women

b. demonstrate continual improvement in applying the EQUAL-SALARY principles

c. validate any actions identified through the on-site assurance work

Veronique Goy Veenhuys - Founder and CEO, EQUAL-SALARY Foundation
By its global character, the certification of Philip Morris International is a major step for pay equality between women and men. That a leading Fortune 500 company makes such a commitment is a strong signal. We are proud of the international scale that PMI’s global certification gives to our cause.
Véronique Goy Veenhuys, Founder and CEO, EQUAL-SALARY Foundation

What about the gender gap?

While Global EQUAL-SALARY Certification doesn’t directly address the gender leadership gap at PMI, the qualitative audit is helping us uncover potential barriers that may hinder equal opportunities for women to advance.

We previously set ourselves a goal to achieve at least 40 percent female representation in management by 2022 and we are delighted to have reached that target.

This is a step in the right direction and to keep things moving forwards we have set out our next gender representation target: To achieve at least 35 percent of women in decision-making leadership roles by 2025.

Read more about our Inclusion & Diversity work.

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