Equality, diversity and human rights >
Equal pay
The Court of Appeal has held that, in assessing whether or not there is a difference in pay that disadvantages women, there is no requirement to focus only on the advantaged group.
The Court of Appeal ruled in Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council v Bainbridge and others [2007] EWCA Civ 929 that a woman claiming equal pay may rely on a job evaluation study even where the woman's job has been assigned a higher value than that of her comparator.
In South Tyneside Metropolitan Borough Council v Anderson and others [2007] IRLR 715, the Court of Appeal has held that employees and their comparators who worked at different establishments, but whose contractual terms and conditions were derived from the same collective agreement, were in the same employment within the meaning of s.1(6) of the Equal Pay Act 1970.
In St Helens Metropolitan Borough Council v Derbyshire and others [2007] IRLR 504 HL, the House of Lords held that an employer that wrote to a number of equal pay litigants and their colleagues warning of potential job losses if they continued with their claims victimised them contrary to the Sex Discrimination Act 1975.
In 1) Bainbridge & Ors 2) Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council v 1) Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council 2) Williams EAT/0424/06 & EAT/0031/07 the Employment Appeal Tribunal held that successful equal pay claims confer the right to up to six years' back pay prior to the institution of proceedings.
This article looks at some of the significant judgments in the area of equal pay over the past year and their implications.
In Cadman v Health and Safety Executive Case C-1705 ECJ, the European Court of Justice held that it is not necessary for an employer to justify use of length of service as a criterion for determining the pay of workers doing work of equal value unless a worker provides evidence that raises serious doubts as to its appropriateness as a basis for determining pay.
We review recent significant equal pay cases and their implications. Developments of note include the application of the "single source" test to comparators within an employment unit, and a reference to the ECJ on whether use of length of service as a pay system criterion requires specific objective justification.
In Hilton UK Hotels Ltd v McNaughton, the EAT holds that the employment tribunal was correct to find that a compromise agreement did not prevent an employee who was excluded from the employer's pension scheme during a period of part-time employment from advancing an equal pay claim.
Bess Sturman and Richard Port of Addleshaw Goddard outline the latest legal rulings and explain what you need to know to avoid tribunals.
Employment law cases: HR and legal information and guidance relating to equal pay.