Equal Pay Claims

Equal pay is an entitlement to the same pay as someone doing comparable work. Equal pay claims are about ensuring that men and women are paid equally for the same kind of work or work of equal value.

Claims are often related to women being paid less than men for doing the same work, but equal pay claims are not always a gender issue and therefore concerned with comparing the pay of the opposite sex.

Equal pay legislation, as enshrined in the Equality Act 2010, protects both men and women and applies to a range of different employment categories including employees, agency and casual workers. It does not matter how long you have been employed or whether you are a full-time or part-time worker, if you are doing broadly the same job, you must be paid the same.

No win, no fee means that, if your claim is not successful, you won’t have to pay a penny towards your case unless you have told us something untrue or otherwise misled us about your claim. There are no hidden charges or other administration fees.

If your claim is successful, you may have to pay a success fee. We deduct this fee from the compensation awarded to you. We always explain our fees in full before we start your case.

Yes, it is possible to make a claim against your current employer if you have not received the same pay for equal work. The good news is your employer cannot mistreat you for claiming, and if they did, it would have to pay you more compensation.

When you bring an equal pay claim, you are automatically protected by law from any unfair or vindictive action by your employer. It would be unlawful for them to try and dismiss you from your current employment.

We appreciate it can sometimes be difficult to ascertain if you have a claim, especially if your employment contract has a pay secrecy clause that states that you are not allowed to discuss your pay with other employees.

Thankfully, the equal pay provisions of the Equality Act 2010 state that an employer cannot stop you from discussing your pay with colleagues for the purposes of identifying whether pay discrimination is taking place. That said, you should only discuss it with a colleague who is most likely to be able to confirm whether there is an equal pay issue or not.

If your employer has failed to pay employees the same or equal pay on a widespread basis (for example, if women have been systematically paid less than men) you could bring a group action to seek redress. A gender pay gap, or other similar issue, by the same employer could be handled collectively. At KP Law we are currently running serveral multi-claimiant equal pay actions against some of the UK’s leading supermarkets. 

While in most equal pay claims, the focus is on actual terms of pay such as basic pay, overtime rates, bonuses, commissions, shift allowances etc, equal pay also includes other aspects where some form of discrimination could have taken place.

Other benefits such as company cars, employer pension contributions, performance targets, holiday entitlements can also be material considerations when it comes to considering equal pay claims.

Each equal pay case is different. We always keep you updated regarding the status of your claim, so you know what is happening and what to expect.

Each case is different and will be judged on its merits. If you do go to an employment tribunal or court, it is up to the judge to consider all the circumstances, including the seriousness of your case and the impact it has had on you.

It is possible, if you are still employed by the employer you are claiming against, your pay going forward should be equal to your comparator (i.e. the person in a similar role against whom your pay claim is being compared).

We cannot say for certain how long it will take for your claim to conclude, and some claims can sometimes take several years. If you are successful, you will also usually be paid interest on some of the compensation awarded. We always continue to update you as your claim progresses so you are always kept fully in the loop. 

You can bring an equal pay claim at any time, providing you are still employed under the contract outlined in your claim. If you no longer work for the company in question, you should bring your equal pay claim within six months of the end of your period of employment with the company.

If you think you have a valid claim, you should act now, as it is possible that the claim may be classed as a sex discrimination claim rather than an equal pay claim, in which case the time limit for bringing a claim is three months less one day from the incident.

It is usually possible (in England and Wales) to claim up to a maximum of six years of lost earnings, effectively back pay, if you have not been paid equally during your period of employment.

We are a specialist group and multi-claimant litigation firm. We specialise in bringing claims on behalf of a large numbers of people against big corporates. Our lawyers have settled claims worth many millions of pounds.  

In addition, we have a team of client service specialists available to answer questions five days a week by phone, email, or SMS between 9am and 6pm. Our client service specialists are in regular direct contact with our legal team.