THE EQUALITY (RACE & DISABILITY) BILL
As businesses should already be aware, the government has proposed to introduce a new Bill on pay gap reporting and equal pay rights in relation to race and disability. The Equality (Race and Disability) Bill seeks to ensure the right to equal pay for all ethnic minorities and disabled individuals. The Bill will include:
extending pay gap reporting to ethnicity and disability for employers with more than 250 staff and measures on equal pay
extending equal pay rights to protect workers suffering discrimination on the basis of race or disability
ensuring that outsourcing of services can no longer be used by employers to avoid paying equal pay
implementing a regulatory and enforcement unit for equal pay with involvement from trade unions
“In order to prepare for the Bill’s introduction, employers should begin to implement processes to facilitate reporting and be conscious about their pay practices, such as salary reviews which are very common at the start of a new year.”
Whilst specific equal pay laws exist already in relation to gender and gender pay gap reporting is an existing requirement by companies with 250 or more employees, the Bill therefore extends and mirrors existing provisions so that employers will have further reporting obligations and equal pay responsibilities. The Bill also makes it easier for employees to bring equal pay claims by providing greater legal certainty beyond the Equality Act 2010 which, in theory, should already ensure equal pay.
In order to prepare for the Bill’s introduction, employers should begin to implement processes to facilitate reporting and be conscious about their pay practices, such as salary reviews which are very common at the start of a new year. Employers can also audit their pay levels to understand any existing inequalities and address these before the Bill comes into force.
Failure to prepare for the Bill’s implementation exposes employers to the risk of being party to equal pay litigation, such as in the case of Next Retail Limited, which you can read about HERE