8 May 2001 -
Tessa Jowell, the Employment Minister announced more steps to be taken
to close the gender pay gap by making the equal pay laws simpler, faster
and fairer. The Government will also provide £145,000 through the Union Learning Fund
to train union representatives to carry out pay reviews.
Making the announcement Tessa Jowell said:
"There are more than 12.5 million women working today, but they do
not always get a fair deal, especially in pay. For every £1 a man
earns for working full-time a woman earns just 82 pence, that is not
acceptable. Getting paid the right rate for the job is crucial , when
women believe their contribution is valued it helps them reach their
full potential and achieve true equality. Simplifying legislation and
making it faster and fairer is an important step in tackling the
gender pay gap.
"We have made a firm commitment to achieve fair pay and equal
opportunities for women. We have already set up the Women's
Employment and Pay Review, appointed Fair Pay Champions and last
year launched a consultation on how to speed up and simplify
employment tribunals hearing equal pay claims.
"Taking a claim to an employment tribunal is usually the last
resort for people who believe they are not getting equal pay at work
and as an equal pay case takes on average between 11 and 28 months
(an equal value case can take between 5 to 48 months) it has not
surprisingly called 'a hell for women'. This is unjust and unfair.
"From trade unions to employer organisations; from lawyers to local
authorities, the proposals in our consultation document have been
well received. We are now intending to tackle the red tape and
bureaucracy involved in taking an equal pay case on three levels.
"First, we propose to simplify the paperwork. In future, a group of
workers making a claim will be able to use a single form rather than
all of them filling out separate forms. And a new questionnaire
will be introduced so women can obtain key information from their
employer right at the start when deciding whether to bring a case.
In some cases this could lead to resolving or settling a claim
rather than taking the tribunal route. Each claim that did not go
to tribunal would save around £5,000 - and just 1 in 10 cases
settled this way would mean almost 250 cases a year.
"Secondly, speeding up the process of taking an equal pay claim to
tribunal is paramount in making the law more accessible to women.
We will encourage tribunals to hear cases themselves by calling in
an 'assessor' to give them expert advice rather than asking for a
formal report from an independent expert in equal value cases. As
these reports take on average a year, this will be at least halved!
In complex cases where an independent expert's evidence is
necessary, normally only that person will give evidence , not the
different experts called in by each of the parties involved. This
has happened in many of the long-running cases and slowed down the
proceedings considerably. In addition, we are scrapping the
detailed procedural Regulations.
"And thirdly we are making the tribunal system fairer by removing
both the "no reasonable grounds" defence and the two year time limit
on back pay.
"But legislation on its own will not close the pay gap. We have
already announced we are encouraging employers to carry out pay
reviews, and now we are helping trade unions to help employers do
them successfully. Their co-operation and expertise can really make a
difference and we are making £145,000 available through the Union
Learning Fund for a pilot programme to train full-time and elected
representatives in carrying out pay reviews in the workplace so they
can work with and help employers to carry them out.
"These measures, together with the Women's Pay and Employment Review
that is being carried out by Denise Kingsmill and the work of the
Fair Pay Champions, are all contributing to our determination to
ensure that equal work equals equal pay."
John Monks TUC General Secretary commented:
"The TUC welcomes the Government's support for the TUC's training
programme for trade union representatives to help them carry out pay
reviews in partnership with employers. We also welcome the
Government's intention to speed up equal pay tribunal procedures and
look forward to working with the Government on the fine detail of the
changes."
Stephen Alambritis, Federation of Small Businesses concurred:
"We welcome any government plans that make laws simpler,
speedier and fairer. Simplifying the paperwork surrounding equal
pay laws will certainly help small employers, especially where this
leads to claims being settled rather than going down the tribunal
route."
As did Susan Anderson, Director of Human Resources Policy at the CBI:
"Long drawn out tribunal proceedings in equal pay cases are not in
anyone's interests - be they employer, individual or tax payer.
These proposals should deliver a more streamlined process. We will
work with the Government to make sure they achieve the right balance
between being fair, fast and workable for all parties involved."
And Julie Mellor, Chair of the Equal Opportunities Commission:
"The slow and complicated nature of equal pay tribunals has
undoubtedly been a barrier to many women who bring equal pay claims,
and having cases that can drag on for years does not benefit
employers either, so these improvements to the system are welcome."
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