Skip to main content
Skip to navigation

Equal pay

The Equal Pay Act 1970 provides that discrimination between the sexes in the terms of their contracts of employment is unlawful. This typically occurs in matters such as salary, bonus payments and benefits.

Employees can claim equal pay with colleagues of the opposite sex where they are in the same employment and doing:

  • Work which is the same or broadly similar
  • Work rated as equivalent under an analytical job evaluation scheme
  • Work which is different but which is of equal value in terms of demands of the jobs

Although it is more than 30 years since the Equal Pay Act outlawed discriminatory pay practices, the gender gap remains. Official statistics show the disparity to be about 19 per cent with the differences caused by discriminatory practices such as the employment of women in traditionally low-paid sectors, and by the uneven burden that childcare responsibilities place on women.

If you think you are being paid unequally you will require expert advice to take your case to an employment tribunal. Russell Jones & Walker has acted in leading test cases in this area, including Bernadette Cadman v Health and Safety Executive, which is now returning to the Court of Appeal after a recent ruling by the European Court of Justice, and Sharp v Caledonia Investments Limited.

Russell Jones & Walker are also leading campaigners and are frequently invited speakers on the subject (Capital Woman conference - organised by the Mayor of London Office).

Events

Russell Jones & Walker hosted an evening conference on Equal Pay on Thurday 6 July at the Institute of Child Health.

The conference was addressed by Kate Bellamy, Senior Policy Officer and co-author of the report at the Fawcett Society, along with Sue Hastings, an independent pay and employment advisor, who has practical experience of introducing new pay structures and evaluations within public and private sector organisations.  Senior practitioners from Russell Jones & Walker discussed the legal issues surrounding equal pay, including the impact of current test cases, and recommendations for changes to tackle the gender pay gap.  Read the agenda in full.

Executive Reps

Our new service for individuals facing grievance and disciplinary hearings.

Further Reading