Question

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps she is taking to encourage equal pay across genders in private corporations.

The need to pay men and women equally for the same work has been required by statute for nearly 50 years, and we expect employers in the private sector to comply with equal pay law.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has a Statutory Code of Practice on Equal Pay, and provides extensive advice guidance on its website to ensure employers know what is required to comply with the law. The EHRC and the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) also provide guidance to help individuals understand their rights and take action if they believe that they are being discriminated against in the pay they receive.

Employees who are concerned that they may not be being paid fairly can seek authoritative and free advice from Acas, before deciding whether to bring a claim before an Employment Tribunal. Where an employer is found to have breached equal pay law, an Employment Tribunal can order it to carry out an equal pay audit.

Our requirement for all larger employers to publish their gender pay gap is helping to increase transparency of all the factors underlying the endemic differences in pay between men and women.