Equal Pay Disputes
The legislation
The Equal Pay Act 1970 enabled both women and men to claim equal pay for the same
or comparable work. The Sex Discrimination Act covered discriminatory non contractual
benefits. These rights are now protected under the Equality Act 2010.
The employer has a defence to an equal pay claim if he can show the difference in
pay is because of another factor which does not involve sex discrimination.
Equal pay claims can be found in nearly any profession, but can be common in the
following areas:
- Legal eg Partners, Associates and Solicitors
- Marketing and Sales
- Research and Development
- Business eg Directors, Chief Executives
- Medical eg Doctors, Consultants, Surgeons, Psychiatrists, Dental Surgeons and Pharmacists
- Police eg Chief constables and Chief inspectors
- Teaching eg Head teachers
So...
- Are you being paid less than a female or male colleague and doing a comparable job?
How to pursue an equal pay claim?
If you are a member of a trade union you should contact them first as they can support
and advise you and your case may be strengthened if others are in the same position
as you.
If you are not a union member and you would like advice from an employment law solicitor
you can contact us directly on 0800 634 1624
What are the time limits for bringing an equal pay claim?
It can be complicated to work out the time limit so you should take legal advice
as soon as possible, but generally an equal pay claim in the Employment Tribunal
must be brought within 6 months of the end of the employment that you are complaining
about. The time limit for bringing an equal pay claim in the court is 6 years from
the time you last received unequal pay, although you should always first consider
if you are in time to lodge Tribunal proceeding.
Get in touch
If you believe you may have an equal pay claim and wish to find out if you could
make a claim for compensation then please call us on 0800 634 1624 or simply complete
the enquiry form and we will get in touch with you.
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