Equal pay for women and men for work of equal value is central to realizing gender equality and women's economic empowerment, reducing poverty and is beneficial to promote economic growth. EPIC aims to accelerate progress towards SDG target 8.5 by leveraging expertise across a diverse range of stakeholders through concrete actions on the ground and in workplaces.

EPIC's comparative advantage is that it engages with public and private development partners in a more coordinated manner to enhance synergies, avoid duplication of efforts and make economies of scale to advance equal pay. Efforts will aim to reduce the gender pay gap, garner commitments to achieve equal pay for work of equal value, and achieve universal ratification of relevant international labour standards.

EPIC will conduct peer-to-peer policy exchanges to discuss best practices, undertake advocacy campaigns, knowledge sharing, peer-reviewed research and produce more robust data and statistical capacities. This will be carried out through webinars; special working groups; global, regional and national conferences; joint publications and tools; EPIC advocacy campaigns; and social media outreach. Capacity building will also be promoted by providing direct technical cooperation to stakeholders requesting support services.

The activities of EPIC are guided by a Steering Committee made up of governments, the International Trade Union Confederation and the International Organisation of Employers. The Steering Committee provides direction and leadership on action to achieve equal pay for work of equal value by facilitating strategic coherence at the global, regional, and national levels. In addition, the Steering Committee will identify priorities for action; finalize and approve work plan; set overall direction for resource mobilization and make resource allocation decisions for pooled funding; authorize the establishment of working groups; convene meetings with the Secretariat and Working Groups as needed; consider relevant resources and staffing levels required for the effective governance of resources; and convene meetings of the Steering Committee. The ILO, UN Women and the OECD serve as EPIC's Secretariat. Membership to EPIC is open to all governments, international and national employers' and workers' organizations, relevant UN entities, private sector businesses, international civil society organizations, foundations, think tanks and academia.

ILO, UN Women, OECD, Iceland, Jordan, Switzerland, South Africa, Republic of Korea, Panama, Canada, International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), International Organisation of Employers (IOE).