Union urges Scottish council to settle after equal pay victory

Trade union Unison Scotland has called on Glasgow City Council to settle an equal pay dispute after winning in the Court of Sessions.

The case concerned female staff who had been excluded both from earning bonuses and from a pay protection system.

It said some 6,000 claimants would benefit in all, some of whom had equal pay claims dating back to 2006.

Unison Scotland secretary Mike Kirby said: “The way Glasgow rates and pays workers has been the source of conflict and division for 10 years. These women have already waited long enough to receive the pay they have worked hard for and deserve. It’s time for Glasgow City Council to do the right thing and pay up on equal pay.”

Glasgow leader Susan Aitken said: “This is a complex legal ruling. However it is now clear that the award of pay protection was done in a way which discriminated against some of our female workers at that time.

“The right thing to do now is for the council to have open discussions with those workers and their representatives about how we give effect to this ruling. I hope there will be goodwill on both sides during those discussions."

The council said its new pay and benefits structure had been designed to ensure equal pay more than 10 years ago, and the matter before the court concerned the operation of a three year pay protection to achieve a 'soft landing' for workers facing a drop in earnings."

The case arose from an appeal by Glasgow against an employment tribunal ruling

But the court noted in its judgment: “There was no evidence before the ET that the appellant had even considered the position of the claimants. 

“No consideration was given to the possibility of offering pay protection to the claimants and no material placed before the ET to attempt a justification of the exclusion on the basis of cost was advanced (not surprisingly since the issue had not even been considered). 

Mark Smulian