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The employers' activity and reporting obligation under the Equality and Anti-Discrimination Act

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The Norwegian Equality and Anti-Discrimination Act sets forth provisions on the employers' activity and reporting obligation (Nw.: "Aktivitets- og redegjørelsesplikt (ARP)"). In our experience, many companies are unaware of these obligations and therefore fail to take and report the required measures in their DEI work. In the following we give a short introduction to the obligations, and what these mean to your company.

The ARP requires all employers, regardless of size, to make active, targeted, and systematic efforts to promote equality, and prevent discrimination at the workplace. In addition to this general duty of activity, many employers are also obliged to comply with and provide reports in accordance with a four-step working method.


The following employers must comply with the four-step working method:

  • all public companies,
  • private companies with more than 50 employees, and
  • private companies with between 20 and 50 employees if requested by the employees or the employee' representatives.

The four-step method requires that the employers, in the context of their operations, must:

  • Perform risk assessments to address whether there is a risk of discrimination or other barriers to equality, including by reviewing pay conditions by reference to gender and the use of involuntary part-time work every two years,
  • analyse the causes of identified risks,
  • implement measures suited to counteract discrimination and promote greater equality and diversity in the company, and
  • evaluate the results of efforts made in accordance with the above.


The efforts made shall be documented and shall be made on an ongoing basis and in cooperation with the employee representatives. The employers who are obliged to work in accordance with the four-step method, are further required to issue a statement in two parts: 

  • the actual status of gender equality in the company, and 
  • what the company is doing to comply with the duties under the four-step model.


The statement is to be published in the company's annual report or another public document. The report must be on an annual basis, however so that the gender pay gap reporting and reporting of involuntary part-time must be made every second year.


Schjødt's Employment & Pension and Corporate Compliance & Crisis Management teams regularly assist clients with DEI and ARP related questions and documentation and are happy to assist with any inquires you may have.

Do you have any questions?