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The Equality Bill

The Equality Bill. A solution to the crisis in equal pay? The UNISON Perspective Liane Venner, UNISON Head of Membership Participation. Current problems equal pay law:. Gender pay gap is stubborn: full time pay gap is 16.4%, part time pay gap is 13.2% Pay discrimination is hidden

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The Equality Bill

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  1. The Equality Bill A solution to the crisis in equal pay? The UNISON Perspective Liane Venner, UNISON Head of Membership Participation

  2. Current problems equal pay law: • Gender pay gap is stubborn: full time pay gap is 16.4%, part time pay gap is 13.2% • Pay discrimination is hidden • No obligations on employers for transparency • Gender segregation • Legal processes are slow – cases lasting 10 years+ • Equal pay not law not compatible with other discrimination law e.g. no hypothetical comparators • Law is individualised: burden on individual applicant

  3. The public sector story • UNISON 45,000+ equal pay cases • Back pay • Protection • The gender equality duty requires public authorities to consider the need to have an objective to address the causes of any pay gap • Procurement = contracting out of equal pay?

  4. Equality Bill proposals: • Secrecy clauses to be outlawed if involved in a “relevant pay discussion” • Employers to have to publish differences in pay between men and women • For private sector with 250+ employees. To be voluntary provision until 2013. EHRC consulting on metrics of reporting • For public sector with 150 employees • Clause 66 Material factor defence – retrograde step codifying Armstrong • Procurement processes to have to take due regard of equality provisions

  5. What’s missing … • Real measures to close the gender pay gap, will voluntarism work? • Mandatory pay audits • Representative actions • Hypothetical comparators in indirect discrimination cases • Consideration of Employment Tribunal recommendations in equal pay cases • Guarantee that Equality Schemes and Equality Impact Assessments will remain in the public sector duty

  6. And also.. • The specific requirement to address the gender pay gap within the public sector duty • Procurement requirements to be spelt out in secondary legislation rather than on face of the Bill • No statutory recognition for trade union equality representatives

  7. UNISON/Fawcett campaign: • Supporting and welcoming the Equality Bill • Mandatory pay audits Representative actions – speeding up cases, removing exposure of individuals • Hypothetical comparators in equal pay cases • Consideration of Employment Tribunal recommendations • Correction of Clause 66, the material factor defence • Recognition of the continuing scandal of the gender pay gap

  8. Conclusion Code of practice on equal pay will be vital A potential political battleground ……. More than a glass half full?

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