Equal pay

October 5th, 2009

The road to equality has been a long one for the women of this country.

No one could dispute the progress that has been made over the years, with women holding some of the highest offices in the land.

But if we needed a reminder of what still needs to be done, we can look no further than the scandal of equal pay.

Sadly, 34 years after the right to equal pay was enshrined in the law, we find women who are still being denied what they are due.

Currently, there are around 35,000 cases log-jammed in the tribunal system, mainly from low-paid women and some of which have been ongoing for six years.

If they were all successful, the liabilities incurred could run to £1 billion and would threaten the stability of local government at a time when budgets are already being squeezed.

As the convener of the Local Government Committee, I was tasked with looking into how the current deadlock can be moved on along with my fellow committee members.

I was able to set out to the Scottish Parliament this week our recommendations on how to end this inequality.

We had heard how some low-paid workers were offered, and in some cases accepted, compensation offers that were barely 40 per cent of the value of their claim, because it came just before Christmas when financial pressures were at their greatest.

In other cases, women have lost their right to claim because they have retired.

Now it appears we may have had a breakthrough with the Scottish Government, the local authorities and the trade unions accepting the committee’s recommendation to work together to end this standstill.

More significantly, the UK Treasury has also indicated now it will allow councils to increase borrowing to help them meet their obligations to these women.

But even if this does end the historical injustice, we must ensure that this sets the future pay rate.

This will bring even greater benefits to low paid women and recognise the valuable work they do.