URGENT ACTION REQUIRED : Potential Equal Pay Claim
As you may be aware, there has been a lot of recent activity regarding potential equal pay claims in the London Borough of Barnet (LBB).
As the UK’s largest union, UNISON has led on equal pay within local government for over a decade and has recovered £millions in compensation for our members. We take the issue extremely seriously.
We appreciate that the prospect of being underpaid due to your gender in a cost-of-living crisis is especially emotive, however, Equal Pay legislation is complex, and UNISON has been carrying out investigations into a number of discriminatory pay practices that have been identified.
We wanted to understand the facts and consider the legal position so we can advise members appropriately. As a result of our investigations, we understand that in the Waste & Recycling service, the Council operates a practice of task and finish and has made bonus payments.
We are now satisfied that there is evidence that is likely to give rise to equal pay claims against LBB with reasonable prospects of success. This is of course dependent on your individual circumstances, and we will require members to complete case forms so that we can confirm whether your individual circumstances are captured within the potential claims we’ve identified. You must provide details of your job role, grade and dates of your employment.
If you have multiple job roles, we need this information for all of them. In order to pursue a claim, you can download an equal pay case form along with guidance on how to complete it.
Please return your completed case form to contactus@barnetunison.org.uk
at your earliest convenience.
In tandem with the legal process, we must also exhaust internal procedures by lodging collective grievance. Once we have received your case form, we will add your name to the collective grievance that we will send to the Council. In addition, we will shortly arrange to start early conciliation on your behalf. This is the pre-requisite to starting a Tribunal claim.
Please be aware of time limits. To pursue a claim for equal pay, the claim must be lodged in the Tribunal within 6 months less one day of the end of your employment or a change in your employment. If you have left the Council in the past 6 months, or if you have changed your role in the last 6 months, please make this clear on the case form.
Please be assured that we will continue to maintain a constructive dialogue with your employer and seek to resolve matters industrially, wherever possible.
We will also keep you updated as to the progress of any negotiations/claims whenever there are any significant developments.
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