by René Lavanchy
BUSINESSES have escaped any new legal obligation to promote equality in the workplace under the Equality Bill unveiled by equality minister Harriet Harman this week.
The bill will force all but the smallest public bodies to publish details of the pay gap between men and women, as well as the proportion of ethnic minority and disabled staff they employ.
But – as the Government has previously indicated – private companies face no legal requirement to publish their gender pay gap until 2013, despite the pay gap being bigger in the private sector. Ministers hope businesses of 250 employees and over will start to publish the reports voluntarily, with legal requirement a “stick in the closet” if they do not.
The TUC broadly welcomed the report, but Unison and the Fawcett Society said that businesses should be forced to become more transparent.
It also remains unclear how companies will be expected to demonstrate their commitment to equality in return for public sector contracts, as this will be the subject of an extra round of consultation with business leaders.
A source close to negotiations said there had been “battles” between Ms Harman’s office and the Office of Government Commerce, which advises on public procurement.
A Government Equalities Office spokesperson said: “It’s clear that it will happen – procurement will be used as a tool. It obviously needs to be thought through.”
“One of the options is that companies tendering might have to meet certain criteria, but the specifics are being worked out over the summer.”
Responding to the bill, Jessica Woodroffe, the Fawcett Society’s head of campaigns, said: “The Government’s recognition that the gender pay gap must be dealt with through pay audits is welcome, but the detail in the bill does not match the rhetoric.
“Companies will only be asked to publish the difference in pay between men and women, not to demonstrate how they will end any pay discrimination. Given that so little may be required from companies, it is all the more disappointing that nothing will happen for another four years.
“As it stands, the bill will not prevent women being paid less than men or deliver justice to those unfairly paid”.
Bronwyn McKenna of Unison noted that only the biggest companies would have to comply with gender pay reports: “Unless we have transparency in pay rates, women will never get true equality. We welcome the emphasis on equal pay audits, but this duty will apply to only 0.4 per cent of employers.”
Alongside the Government’s consultation, the Equality and Human Rights Commission will develop systems for measuring gender pay gaps prior to the bill taking effect next year. The EHRC recently calculated that the pay gap between full-time male and female workers is nearly 22 per cent in private companies, compared to 14 per cent in the public sector.
The bill seeks to bring together anti-discrimination rules contained in 116 Acts of Parliament, statutory instruments, European directives and codes of practice.
As well as restating existing laws, it imposes a new duty on the public sector to promote social mobility, and increases employers’ scope for positive action when choosing between job applicants of equal merit.
