Equal Pay has been on the statute books since the Ford Dagenham Seamstresses took up the gauntlet and won in the late sixties. However, until recently Equal Pay had been the viewed as the poor relation on the battleground of pay disputes.
Equal pay is about ensuring men and women are paid the same for equal work meaning like work, work rated as equivalent, or work of equal value. Whilst Equal Pay claims frequently go hand in hand with wider sex discrimination complaints, they are less common because they are limited in scope to purely contractual pay and benefits – basic pay, holiday pay, car allowances and rare contractual bonus/ commission schemes.
The introduction of mandatory gender pay gap reporting pay may lead to resurgence of interest in this area. Certainly, the publication by employers of data showing significant gender pay gaps will inevitably fan the flames in this direction.
We advise both employers and employees on perceived contractual inequalities relating to often highly complex pay and reward schemes. Our focus remains on identifying issues early and seeking to resolve them without recourse to litigation where possible.