Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Employee relationsEmployment lawEquality, diversity and inclusionEqual payTrade unions

Councils spend millions fighting equal pay claims

by John Charlton 12 Oct 2009
by John Charlton 12 Oct 2009

Local authorities are spending up to £1.3m each in legal fees fighting equal pay claims.

Unison, the union which represents local authority workers, used the Freedom of information Act to find out how much 50 authorities in England and Wales were spending on legal fees to fight equal pay claims lodged by low-paid female workers.

It said more than £11.5m was spent between 2003 and 2009 by the 50 councils it investigated, a figure it believes is the tip of the iceberg.

Unison said Sandwell Council has spent £1.32m on external legal advice and representation, which put it at the top of the spending list. It was followed by Coventry at £1.24m and Bury at £607,477.

Responding, Sandwell Council deputy leader and Cabinet member for improvement and equality Pauline Hinton said: “The idea that Sandwell is resisting equal pay for low-paid women is laughable.

“Like all other councils nationwide, we are legally obliged to bring in a new single status agreement for staff – and we are now less than three months away from what promises to be a successful launch in January next year.

“More than 10,000 employees – well over 90% of those involved – have said they are willing to accept the deal. And the facts show that about 5,000 of them whose pay is going up – by an average of £820 a year – are mainly female employees in historically lower-paid jobs.

Hinton added: “The legal fees incurred do not relate solely to litigation, but also issues in relation to the introduction of the new single status pay and grading structure; for example, advice on the council’s attempts to reach a collective agreement and alternatives which it has had to consider since it became clear tha a collective agreement was unlikely.”

Other high-spending councils named by Unison included Rotherham (£473,689.96) and Northumberland (£400,000). The highest-spending Welsh authorities named in the survey are Cardiff, which spent £216,332, and Newport City, £138,926.47.

The union said the figures meant that Sandwell has spent £124 per female employee resisting equal pay while the equivalent figure at Rotherham is £115 and Coventry £104.

“The spending,” said Unison, “is in shocking contrast to the earnings of the low-paid members of Unison. Some local government employees including cleaners, cooks, and care assistants earn as little as £6.30 per hour, or £12,145 each year.”

Unison general secretary Dave Prentis said it was a “national disgrace” that local authorities were spending so much money on fighting to keep women’s wages down.

“What a waste of money. Councils are stuffing money into lawyers’ pockets to put off the inevitable. Expensive lawyers are raising tiny technical points and fighting issues the councils have already been advised they will lose.

“Cases drag on for years and women have died by the time legal arguments are resolved. Taxpayers’ money is simply being poured down the drain and low-paid women continue to be underpaid for jobs that society simply couldn’t function without.”

Other councils’ spend on equal pay legal fees, according to Unison, include:



  • Leeds £1.17m, including £298,648.10 external costs
  • Hartlepool £165,788.75
  • Liverpool £90,478.89
  • Bridgend £76,420.91
  • Bolton £100,467.98, including £40,033.87 external costs

Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance

Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday

OptOut
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Councils who refused to supply information or wanted more than £450 to do so, according to Unison, included Hackney, Warrington, Blackpool and Caerphilly. Councils that have incurred no costs included Isle of Wight, Guildford and Kensington & Chelsea.

How to handle equal pay claims

John Charlton

previous post
Housing association staff pay continues to rise
next post
Employee engagement is key to performance and retention

You may also like

Public sector workers gain pay rises of up...

22 May 2025

Fewer workers would comply with a return-to-office mandate

21 May 2025

Redefining leadership: From competence to inclusion

21 May 2025

Ryanair demands flight attendants pay back salary increase

21 May 2025

Consultation launched after Supreme Court ‘sex’ ruling

20 May 2025

Minister defends Employment Rights Bill at Acas conference

16 May 2025

CBI chair Soames accuses ministers of not listening...

16 May 2025

Union rep teacher awarded £370k for unfair dismissal

15 May 2025

EHRC bows to pressure and extends gender consultation

15 May 2025

‘Polygamous working’ is a minefield for HR

14 May 2025

  • 2025 Employee Communications Report PROMOTED | HR and leadership...Read more
  • The Majority of Employees Have Their Eyes on Their Next Move PROMOTED | A staggering 65%...Read more
  • Prioritising performance management: Strategies for success (webinar) WEBINAR | In today’s fast-paced...Read more
  • Self-Leadership: The Key to Successful Organisations PROMOTED | Eletive is helping businesses...Read more
  • Retaining Female Talent: Four Ways to Reduce Workplace Drop Out PROMOTED | International Women’s Day...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2025

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2025 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+