A well-defined compensation policy is essential to ensure a transparent and equitable salary structure across the organisation. The implementation of such a policy improves pay equality, enhances employee satisfaction, and strengthens the organisation’s commitment to fairness and transparency. This policy establishes a framework that links compensation with the responsibilities and impact of each position, ensuring that the employees are paid fairly and in consistency with their colleagues. The framework accounts for key factors such as job roles, experience and performance metrics. The goal is to promote internal equality, while remaining competitive in the market. Key elements of the policy include:

• Salary bands for each position level, reviewed annually to reflect industry benchmarks;

• Transparent criteria for salary progression and adjustments, reducing the risk of potential unintended biases.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager and Chief Financial Officer.

Timeline: Completion by the 2^nd quarter of 2025.

Resources required: Internal salary data, market benchmarking reports and time from the HR team.

Indicators/Targets:

• Policy document finalised and published within the specified timeline;

• Annual updates and communication sessions to ensure employees understand the policy.

Prior to the annual salary revision, the P&C Manager and CFO will conduct a comprehensive annual salary audit to identify any pay disparities or gaps within the organisation. The audit evaluates employee compensation across roles, departments and gender to ensure that salaries are aligned with organisational pay equality goals.

Any identified gaps are analysed to determine whether they are justified, based on factors such as job role, experience and performance. If a disparity is found to be unjustified, corrective actions are recommended as part of the upcoming salary review process. The results of the initial audit is compared with the final salary adjustments made during the annual salary revision to track progress and ensure continuous improvement in pay equality.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager, Chief Financial Officer and Gender Equality Committee.

Timeline: By the 4^th quarter every year, starting from 2026.

Resources:

• Human Resource Information system for data collection and analysis;

• Salary benchmarking tools for market comparison;

• Internal guidelines on pay structure and policies;

• Reports from previous salary audits;

• Input from the Gender Equality Committee for additional insights.

Indicators/Targets:

• Comparison of the average salaries across categories and genders on a yearly basis.

• Tracking of the number of unjustified pay gaps over 5% that were addressed.

Objective: To enhance transparency in compensation practices and promote pay equality sharing salary tables with employees annually showing the average and median of the salary as calculated by categories and gender.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager and Chief Financial Officer.

Timeline: By the 1^st quarter every year.

Resources:

• Approximately 4 hours of the P&C Manager’s time for preparing and disseminating the salary tables;

• Human Resource Information system to extract and compile salary data;

• Internal communication tools for distributing the document to employees.

Indicators/Targets:

• Timely Publication of Salary Tables: Ensure that the tables are published and distributed to all employees by the end of 1st quarter each year, differentiating job categories and gender classifications.

Objective: To promote transparency and fairness in recruitment practices by including the salary range for each job vacancy, ensuring that candidates have a clear picture of the compensation. For every job vacancy posted, the corresponding salary range is included, based on the level of the position. The final salary offer shall be determined by considering the candidate's qualifications, experience, skills and the value they bring to the organisation. This approach aims to:

• Ensure transparency in the hiring process;

• Align recruitment practices with pay equality principles;

• Attract qualified candidates by providing clear compensation values.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager.

Timeline: Whenever there is a job vacancy.

Resources:

• Approximately 1 hour of the P&C Manager’s time to ensure the salary range is accurately included in job postings;

• Human resource information system and job evaluation tools to determine appropriate salary ranges.

Indicators/Targets:

• Ensure salary ranges are included in all job vacancies at the time of publication.

Objective: To establish a standardised procedure for objectively evaluating employee performance and capabilities, ensuring that salary adjustments and career progression decisions are based on measurable contributions. A performance and capability assessment framework is developed to evaluate the individual contributions of employees across various roles and functions. This procedure provides objective insights into employee performance, helping to:

• Support fair and transparent salary increases;

• Identify high-potential employees for career progression;

• Align individual performance with organisational goals;

• Provide clear guidelines on performance incentives and bonuses.

The framework includes clear criteria for performance evaluation, capability assessment and feedback mechanisms to ensure continuous improvement.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager and Chief Financial officer.

Timeline: By the 4^th quarter 2025.

Resources:

• Approximately 40 hours of the P&C Manager’s time for developing the assessment framework and related documentation;

• Internal tools and systems for performance tracking and evaluation;

• Input from department heads to tailor the assessment criteria to different roles.

Indicators/Target:

• Ensure the performance and capability assessment framework is developed including comprehensive evaluation criteria covering both performance outcomes and individual capabilities and finalised by 4^th quarter 2025.

Objective: To promote a healthy work-life balance framework for all employees by providing clear guidance on available rights and organisational measures that support personal and professional well-being.

A comprehensive set of Work-Life Balance guidelines is developed and published in each Common Facility. The guidelines outline the rights recognised by local laws in each country as well as additional organisational initiatives aimed at enhancing work-life balance for all employees regardless of their personal conditions. The document is included in the Welcome Package for all new employees upon joining the organisation.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager.

Timeline: By the 1^st quarter of 2025.

Resources: 10 hours of the P&C Manager.

Indicators/Targets:

• Ensure the set of guidelines for each common facilities are finalised and distributed by the end of Q1 2025;

• Include the guidelines in all Welcome Packages provided to new employees.

Objective: To implement a digital system for time recording that aligns with legal requirements and supports the organisation’s flexible working policy, thus enabling employees to better balance work and personal responsibilities.

Where time recording is mandatory, such as Italy and Spain, a digital time recording system is utilised to ensure compliance. This system allows employees to log their working hours, providing flexibility to adjust their schedules within predefined margins to accommodate personal responsibilities. Additionally, the system tracks extended working hours, which can be compensated during periods of lower workload or when personal needs arise. This approach aims to promote a healthier work-life balance while meeting organisational requirements.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager, the Employees and Managers.

Timeline: By the 2^nd quarter of 2025.

Resources:

• Approximately 15 hours of the P&C Manager’s time for system implementation and training;

• Digital time recording tools and software.

Indicators/Targets:

• Ensure that all employees are using the time recording system in the countries with this obligation;

• Deviation of less than 15% in hours worked recorded at two points in the year (at 30 June and 31 December).

Objective: To implement a digital system for accurately recording and managing overtime hours, ensuring that employees are compensated fairly in accordance with legal requirements and organisational policies.

A new digital system is introduced to improve the management of overtime worked during weekends, public holidays or beyond standard working hours. This process is integrated into the existing Guideline for Leave Management through the LifeWatch ERIC Operational System (LwOS; Zoho platform People function). This system ensures that all overtime hours are recorded and compensated according to the applicable labour regulations. The employee can accumulate overtime hours as credits, which can then be used to take time off whenever agreed with the manager or during periods of reduced workload.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager, Employees and Managers.

Timeline: By the 2^nd quarter of 2025.

Resources:

• Approximately 5 hours of the P&C Manager’s time for system setup and communication;

• LwOS (Zoho People function) for time tracking and overtime management.

Indicators/Targets:

• Overtime Compensation Rate: Ensure that at least 95% of recorded overtime hours are compensated within the designated period.

Objective: To ensure efficient meeting and event planning across different facilities by providing employees with a shared digital calendar that includes bank holidays for all locations.

A shared Bank Holidays Common calendar is set up in Zoho Calendar and made accessible to all employees. This calendar displays the bank holidays specific to each facility, allowing employees to take these into account when scheduling meetings or events across different locations. The calendar is reviewed and updated annually to ensure accuracy.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager, Employees and Managers.

Timeline: By the 2^nd quarter of 2025.

Resources:

• Approximately 2 hours of the P&C Manager’s time for calendar setup and annual updates;

• LwOS (Zoho Calendar function) for maintaining and sharing the calendar.

Indicators/Targets:

• Ensure the calendar is updated by the beginning of each year and employees are informed.

Objective: To improve internal communication and collaboration by configuring LwOS (Zoho People function) to display the availability status of employees, including holidays and other paid leave. This measure helps to avoid interactions with colleagues who are unavailable.

Zoho People is configured to show real-time availability status for employees, indicating whether a colleague is on holiday or other forms of paid leave. This system ensures that employees and managers can easily check the availability of their colleagues before scheduling meetings or assigning tasks. Regular updates are performed to maintain accuracy.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager, Employees and Managers.

Timeline: by the 2^nd quarter of the 2025.

Resources:

• Approximately 3 hours of the P&C Manager’s time for initial setup and periodic updates;

• LwOS (Zoho People function) for tracking and displaying employee availability.

Indicators/Targets:

• Ensure the availability status is updated for 100% of employees in Spain and Italy;

• Provide a brief guide to employees on how to check availability in Zoho People.

Objective: To review the working calendar to redistribute (if necessary) working hours along the year following the applicable regulations.

An ad-hoc committee for each common facility in collaboration with the P&C Manager analyses if there is a more suitable distribution of hours along the year rather than 40 hours a week in Italy or Spain and 38 in the Netherlands.

Responsible Parties: ad-hoc committee and People & Culture Manager.

Timeline: by the 3^rd quarter of the 2025.

Resources:

• Approximately 3 hours of the P&C Managers and committees.

Indicators/Targets:

• Committee approval of an agreed working calendar.

Objective: Allow more flexibility during the days before and after the trip, including extra days for remote working in order to compensate for the time out from home.

Resources:

• No particular resources are necessary.

Indicators/Target:

• Inclusion of this measure in a new version of the guideline for Work-Life Balance.

Executive Board members play a critical role in the planning, supervision, monitoring and implementation of LifeWatch ERIC activities, including the execution of the Strategic Working Plan and decisions made by the General Assembly. They are responsible for ensuring the smooth operation of the organisation across all business areas.

Starting from the upcoming vacancy for the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) position in 2025, the recruitment process prioritises gender balance by actively promoting the role of the gender less represented in the Executive Board. The goal is to ensure that at least one man and one woman, in all their diversity, are included amongst the finalists. In cases where candidates have equal qualifications, preference is given to the less represented gender to support gender balance within the Executive Board.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager and Executive Board.

Timeline: By the 4^th quarter of 2025.

Resources:

• Approximately 15 hours of the P&C Manager’s time for recruitment planning and candidate outreach;

• External recruitment platforms and professional networks to promote the vacancy to a diverse candidate pool.

Indicators/Targets:

• Guarantee that the pool of finalists in the recruitment process includes at least one man and one woman, in all their diversity.

Objective: To promote gender balance within the Officer category by ensuring fair representation and reviewing the roles, responsibilities and contributions of Officers as part of the organisation's compensation policy.

The Officer category plays a key role in defining the strategy within their areas of expertise, leading and planning activities and processes to achieve short, medium and long-term results. Officers bring their specialised knowledge to decision-making processes that significantly impact the organisation.

A thorough review of the positions within this category is conducted to assess their contributions and ensure the roles are appropriately classified and compensated. This review includes an analysis of gender representation to promote a balanced and diverse leadership team.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager and Executive Board.

Timeline: By the 2^nd quarter of 2025.

Resources:

• Approximately 10 hours of the P&C Manager’s time for position analysis and policy review;

• Internal data on current Officer roles and gender representation.

Indicators/Targets:

• Achieve a gender proportion of at least 40% to 60% within the Officer category. Follow-up on an annual basis.

Objective: To promote gender balance within the organisation's Committees by introducing gender quotas, aligned with national laws and best practices in diversity and inclusion.

Gender balance is ensured across key Advisory Boards and Committees by proposing and implementing gender quotas. This initiative aims to create a more diverse and inclusive decision-making process, enhancing the quality and breadth of perspectives in organisational governance. Committees covered by this initiative include:

• Financial Committee (FINCOM);

• In-Kind Contribution Committee (IKCC);

• Scientific and Technical Advisory Board (STAB);

• Research Infrastructure Committee (RIC).

The proposed gender quotas aims for a minimum representation of 40% for either gender, taking into account any applicable national laws and guidelines.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager and Executive Board

Timeline: By the 2^nd quarter of 2025

Resources:

• Ongoing Monitoring: Annual reviews to ensure committees maintain the minimum gender balance targets;

• Financial Resources/Training Budget: For workshops and training sessions to educate committee members on the importance of gender balance and inclusion.

Indicators/Targets:

• Achieve a minimum gender proportion of 40% to 60% within each committee;

• Conduct annual reviews to track progress and maintain balance over time.

Objective: To attract and retain diverse talent by ensuring that all job descriptions are written in an inclusive language and reflect the organisation's commitment to diversity and equal opportunity.

Job vacancies are described using inclusive language to avoid any biases and ensure that all qualified candidates feel encouraged to apply. Each job description includes the following statement:

"LifeWatch ERIC is an equal opportunity employer and encourages all qualified candidates to apply, regardless of ethnicity, gender, age, national origin or sexual orientation".

During the recruitment process, the following measures are be implemented:

• Guarantee that the pool of finalists in the recruitment process includes at least one man and one woman, in all their diversity, who meet the job requirements;

• If no candidates from the under-represented gender groups meet the initial requirements, an active search is to be conducted on professional platforms to invite candidates qualified from these groups to participate in the recruitment process.

These measures aim to promote gender balance and ensure equal opportunities for all candidates.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager.

Timeline: 1^st quarter of the 2026.

Resources: Approximately 20 hours of the P&C Manager’s time for drafting and updating job descriptions and conducting active searches.

Indicators/Targets:

Gender Balance: Achieve a target of at least 80% of recruitment processes that include one man and one woman, in all their diversity, in the interview stage.

Objective: To promote gender balance and equal participation in internal training sessions focused on soft skills development, ensuring that all individuals have equal opportunities to enhance their leadership and interpersonal skills.

The 2025 employees training plan ensures balanced gender representation in internal training sessions, particularly in programmes that focus on soft skills such as Leadership Development, Negotiation Skills, Training of Trainers and Presentation and Public Speaking Skills. The goal is to provide all individuals with equal access to development opportunities that enhance their interpersonal and leadership capabilities.

Efforts are made to encourage balanced participation by identifying potential participants from under-represented genders and ensuring that training invitations are extended equitably.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager.

Timeline: By the 4^th quarter of 2025.

Resources: €20,000 allocated from the training plan budget for 2025.

Indicators/targets:

• Achieve a minimum of 40% of either gender participation in each training session focused on soft skills.

Objective: To ensure that the gender dimension is systematically integrated into research projects which LifeWatch ERIC coordinates by including specific actions, analyses or considerations related to gender equality.

Each research project includes a dedicated section addressing the gender dimension, detailing specific actions or analyses to promote gender balance and consider gender perspectives in project objectives, methodologies and outcomes. The Project Managers ensure that gender considerations are embedded in the project design and implementation phases.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager, Project Managers.

Timeline: 4^th quarter of the 2025.

Resources: Approximately 10 hours of the Project Manager’s time per project to include and monitor the gender dimension.

Indicator/Target:

• Achieve gender integration in at least 80% of research projects.

Objective: To enhance the Gender Committee's understanding of gender-related issues by conducting a dedicated gender awareness training session. This training provides the committee members with the knowledge and tools needed to analyse the current Gender Equity Plan and propose meaningful improvements.

A gender awareness training session is organised for all members of the Gender Committee. The training is facilitated by a gender expert, with qualification and experience working with organisations and institutions across Europe. It covers key concepts, challenges and best practices in promoting gender equity and provides practical guidance on identifying gaps and opportunities in the organisation's Gender Equality Plan.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager, Gender Expert.

Timeline: By the 1^st quarter of 2025.

Resources:

• Gender expert: External facilitator to deliver the training session;

• Financial resources: at the scale of 1,000 €.

Indicator/Target:

• Conduct the gender awareness training session ensuring 100% of the participation of all four members of the Gender Committee.

Objective: To promote a culture of gender equality across the organisation by providing regular gender awareness training to all employees. The training covers key concepts of gender equality, potential unconscious bias and the specific measures outlined in the organisation's Gender Equity Plan.

A comprehensive gender awareness training session is conducted for all employees every two years. The training addresses various aspects of gender equality, including organisational policies, best practices and the measures mentioned in this document. It is facilitated by a gender expert to ensure the content is relevant and impactful.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager and Gender Expert.

Timeline: Every two years.

Resources: Gender Expert: External facilitator to deliver the training session.

Indicator:

• Training Completion: Conduct the gender awareness training session, achieving an attendance rate of at least 90% of employees for each training session.

Objective: To revise the Procedure for Prevention and Action in Case of Harassment, originally defined in 2023, ensuring it remains comprehensive and effective in addressing harassment issues. The review focuses on types of behaviour, reporting mechanisms, investigation processes, support for victims, disciplinary measures and prosecution. Input from the gender expert is incorporated to identify potential improvements.

The revision process includes:

• A thorough review of the existing document to ensure clarity and completeness;

• Input from a Gender Expert to evaluate the procedure's effectiveness and alignment with best practices;

• Updates to enhance the procedure's comprehensiveness, particularly regarding gender-based violence and victim support;

• Release of the updated procedure in the organisation's Document Management.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager and Gender Expert.

Timeline: 1^st quarter of the 2026.

Resources: Gender Expert: External consultant to provide specialised input.

Indicators/Targets: The document released in LifeWatch ERIC Document Management System.

• Document Release: Ensure the updated procedure is released in the Document Management System and communicated to all employees.

Objective: Promote balanced representation in social media posts and campaigns by ensuring diverse and inclusive content that reflects gender balance and avoids reinforcing stereotypes.

It should be noted that the most exposed positions in the media are mainly occupied by men.

The Communication Department ensures that social media posts and campaigns, telling LW ERIC own stories, feature balanced representation in their messages, images and videos. This includes:

• Ensuring campaign messaging is inclusive and promotes equality;

• Starting monitoring social media content to establish the baseline, track progress and make necessary adjustments;

• Monitor own contents and the presence of LW ERIC Staff members in social posts. Group pictures or data coming from events organised by other organisations are excluded.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager and Chief Communication Officer.

Timeline: Throughout the year from 1^st quarter of the 2026.

Resources:

• Photo reports from own events to ensure diverse representation;

• 5% of the Communication Officer's time for content creation and review.

Indicators/Targets:

• At least 35% female centred posts against 65% male centred posts. Gender neutral and gender balanced posts will also be counted. Follow-up on an annual basis.

Objective: Demonstrate the organization’s commitment to gender equality by celebrating key dates with specific awareness campaigns.

For example, to highlight the under-represented contributions of women in science and resecarch sector, organising campaigns to highlight their achievements, in line with the broader goals of equity.

The Communication Department and People and Culture Manager, plans and executes specific campaigns to mark important gender-related anniversaries. For instance, in the case of under-represented women in science and resecarch sector, the International Day of Women and Girls in Science (11^th February) and International Women’s Day (8^th March), may form such campaign examples.

These campaigns includes digital materials, social media posts and internal communications to raise awareness and reinforce the organisation’s commitment to gender equality.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager and Chief Communication Officer.

Timeline: By 1^st quarter of 2026.

Resources:

• 5% of the Communication Officer's time: For coordinating and managing the campaigns and creating visual content.

Indicators/Targets:

• Ensure at least two specific campaign's annually.

Objective: Design and produce communication materials that reflect gender awareness and inclusivity by avoiding stereotypes and promoting balanced representation.

The Communication Department ensures that all promotional materials, including brochures, videos, merchandising and digital content, are gender inclusive or neutral. The design process prioritises:

• Avoiding gender stereotypes in visuals and language;

• Ensuring balanced representation of all genders in imagery and messaging;

• Using inclusive language in all written content.

Responsible Parties: People & Culture Manager and Chief Communication Officer.

Timeline: throughout the year.

Resources:

• 5% of the Communication Officer's time: For coordinating and managing the product creation and creating visual content;

• Budget for the production of merchandising.

Indicators/Target:

• All promotional materials produced are gender inclusive or neutral. Follow-up on an annual basis.

Objective: Enhance balanced gender representation in internal and external communications by ensuring fairness and inclusivity in visuals, language and narratives across all media channels. This includes pro-active engagement in ensuring balanced gender representation when organising own events, both for what concerns invited speaker, as well as participants, when their costs are covered by LifeWatch ERIC itself (i.e. Conferences, Workshops, Summer Schools).

The Communication Department collaborates with the Executive Board reviews and updates communication practices to ensure that all content reflects gender balance. This includes:

• Ensuring that images, videos and promotional materials feature diverse and balanced representation;

• Using inclusive language in all internal and external communications;

• Creating narratives that avoid gender stereotypes and promote equality;

• Balanced Gender representation is ensured on the occasion of events organised by LifeWatch ERIC.

Responsible Parties: Chief Communication Officer, People & Culture Manager and Executive Board.

Timeline: 4^th quarter 2026.

Resources: 5% Communication Officer's time.

Indicators/Target:

• All media and communication materials are gender inclusive or neutral. Follow-up on an annual basis;

• At least 80% of balanced Representation in LifeWatch ERIC's events guests.