Government response to consultation on Equal Pay
GOVERNMENT TO PRESS AHEAD WITH EQUAL PAY AUDITS
20 June 2012
The government has confirmed that it intends to press ahead with plans to require employers to conduct pay audits if they lose an equal pay case (or a sex discrimination case related to pay) at an employment tribunal.
Eversheds reports :
Such an audit is likely to require an employer to compare the pay of women and men doing equal work, investigate the causes of any potential discrepancies, and consider what needs to be done to close any gaps that cannot be satisfactorily explained on grounds other than sex. The government sought views on this proposal last year as part of the ‘Modern Workplaces’ consultation. It says it will consult again later this year on the exact details of how the audits will operate and what publication requirements will apply. In the meantime Lynne Featherstone, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in the Equalities Office, has confirmed that micro-businesses (presumably those with fewer than 10 employees) will initially be exempt from the proposals. There will also be exemptions for organisations where an audit has been completed in the previous three years, or where the employer can show they have transparent pay practices or that there is some other good reason why an audit would not serve a useful purpose. Furthermore, it appears that an audit will only be required ‘where continuing discrimination is likely’, according to the statement given by Lynne Featherstone to Parliament. “Given that the requirement to carry out a pay audit will only apply as a consequence of losing a relevant tribunal claim, the impact of any change in the law will be limited. Nevertheless, many organisations will be concerned at the move, which seems to be swimming against the deregulatory tide of other government policies. Employers will feel under increased pressure to settle equal pay claims that they might otherwise have defended, to avoid the risk of having to carry out a time consuming analysis of pay and jobs across their organisation. That said, the government’s plan to push ahead with this proposal is not altogether surprising: in 2010 the coalition partners both gave election manifesto commitments to introduce compulsory pay audits in some shape or form. The present proposals reflect the Conservative party’s pledge to ‘force equal pay audits on any company found to be discriminating on the basis of gender’, rather than the much more extensive approach preferred by the Liberal Democrats which would have required ‘fair pay audits’ for every company with over 100 employees.” Shirley Wright, partner at international law firm Eversheds, comments:
Modern Workplaces government response to consultation on Equal Pay
GOVERNMENT RESPONSE TO THE MODERN WORKPLACES CONSULTATION PROPOSALS ON EQUAL PAY AUDITS
4 July 2012
The government has published its response to an element of the Modern Workplaces consultation which proposes the requirement for employers who lose an Employment Tribunal case on equal pay to carry out a pay audit.
CIPP Policy News Journal
12/04/2013, Page 339 of 362
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