Penalties
Article 23
1. Member States shall lay down the rules on effective, proportionate and dissuasive penalties applicable to infringements of the rights and obligations relating to the principle of equal pay. Member States shall take all measures necessary to ensure that those rules are implemented and shall, without delay, notify the Commission of those rules and of those measures and of any subsequent amendment affecting them. 2. Member States shall ensure that the penalties referred to in paragraph 1 guarantee a real deterrent effect with regard to infringements of the rights and obligations relating to the principle of equal pay. Those penalties shall include fines, the setting of which shall be based on national law. 3. The penalties referred to in paragraph 1 shall take into account any relevant aggravating or mitigating factor applicable to the circumstances of the infringement, which may include intersectional discrimination. 4. Member States shall ensure that specific penalties apply in the case of repeated infringements of the rights and obligations relating to the principle of equal pay. 5. Member States shall take all measures necessary to ensure that the penalties provided for pursuant to this Article are effectively applied in practice.