Making equal pay work for our members

by Kate Ramsden

Equal pay is the biggest challenge currently facing UNISON and branches must be well supported and resourced to deal with it. This was the message from the recent training event, How to make equal pay work in your branch, organised by the Pay Equality Group (PEG) led by Joe Di Paola, Scottish Organiser (Bargaining).

The group has been set up to support and advise branches and to put forward equal pay claims to tribunal and is a key plank of UNISON Scotland's strategy to tackle pay inequality among our members.

Around 80 activists from 26 Local Government branches, SEPA and the Scottish Enterprise Careers and Development branch attended the weekend seminar - the most recent in a range of training events and briefings on single status and equal pay set up to enhance activists' knowledge and understanding of the key legal and policy issues and to develop their casework skills.

Setting the scene, Peter Hunter, Scottish Legal Officer told the seminar, "We are committed to actively running equal pay claims for our members, to challenge low pay and poverty. This is consistent with our political aims and is also a legal and moral imperative for UNISON."

"However, there are huge challenges," said Peter. "Tackling equal pay needs resources in terms of both time and people with a knowledge and understanding of the processes."

He reminded us again of the position for members who may be time barred from making equal pay claims if they do not lodge them within six months of leaving their job or changing their contract. (See www.unison-scotland.org.uk/localgovt/equalpay)

Peter O'Donnell from the Equal Opportunities Commission gave a legal overview, describing how the Equal Pay Act works in practice. "Both men and women can make an equal pay claim, but they must compare themselves against someone of the opposite sex, who works for the same employer," he said.

The law presumes discrimination if men and women are paid differently for equal work and it is up to the employer to rebut this, he explained. The workshops gave activists the chance to put their knowledge into practice, to find out more about the casework systems set up by UNISON Scotland and to develop their casework skills.

The activities provided the opportunity to work through case examples and to get advice on cases already up and running in branches. There was also an opportunity to identify branches' current and future support needs.

As they left on the Sunday afternoon, it seemed that most activists gave the seminar a thumbs up. "I learned a great deal from the course," said Liz Mackay, Branch Secretary of Highland Local Government Branch. "It added to what I already knew and has given me more confidence in my abilities to negotiate on equal pay."

"The training has confirmed for me that trade unions are in the best position to take forward pay equality for our members and that UNISON is taking a lead in this," commented Colin Turbett, Chair of North Ayrshire Branch.

And Gillian Hutcheson, Branch Administrator for West Lothian UNISON added, "I thought the course was very relevant to the work we are doing in our branch on equal pay and single status. I found it really useful to hear about the experiences of activists in other branches and to share good practice."

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