The Gender Pay Gap and Gender Equality at Work

This is an excerpt from a recent article in the National Law Review, relating to the Gender Pay Gap. We thought our visitors would find this an interesting read.

To mark the centenary year of women being granted the right to vote in the United Kingdom, the Fawcett Society in January published its “Sex Discrimination Law Review”. The timing of the report could not have been more apt, with stories of sex discrimination and gender inequality breaking almost daily, powerful social media campaigns promoting women’s rights coming to the fore, and women’s marches occurring in London and cities around the world.

In the UK, we have witnessed in the press the widespread condemnation of the Presidents Club following serious allegations of harassment at their recent fundraising dinner. There has also been close public scrutiny of the BBC in light of an apparent pay disparity between men and women, as well as equal pay claims threatened against retailer Tesco on the basis that women have been paid less than men for work of equal value, which it is reported could amount to liability of 4 billion British pounds ($5.5 billion). The focus is turning now to companies reporting their gender pay gap, with a 4 April 2018 deadline looming for private sector and voluntary employers with 250 or more employees (30 March 2018 for public sector employers) to publish their reports.

In the current climate, and particularly in light of the abolition of employment tribunal fees in the UK last summer, allegations and claims of harassment and discrimination (whether explicit or unconscious) are likely to be made against many employers in the coming months and years.

Read our separate article on The Fawcett Report .