School Meals Workers employed by Cleveland County Council are celebrating a £4 million negotiated settlement following Industrial Tribunal claims under Equal Pay laws. The GMB and UNISON members involved will receive individual awards ranging from £900 to £4,800 paid in two instalments: March 1997 and March 1998.
It is the biggest equal pay settlement ever and could herald similar claims against other local authorities. The 1,500 women had already secured over £1 million in a sex discrimination case which was settled in July 1996. Following that success the women, represented by Thompsons, took action to secure equal pay with other, predominantly male, manual workers.
The sex discrimination and equal pay claims followed the compulsory competitive tendering of the school meals service in 1994/95. To make savings the Council imposed a radical change to the wage structure, imposing pay cuts which led to the sex discrimination claims as male manual workers had not faced such pay cuts. In addition. the women workers did not receive the bonuses available to male manual staff, such as parks and refuse workers, and this led to the equal pay claim.
Cleveland County Council no longer exists and has been replaced by four unitary authorities, each with its own pay structure. Talks will now take place with each authority based on the catering staff being entitled to the same bonus payments as other manual workers.
The implications for other local authorities could be immense. Virtually every local authority operates bonus and productivity schemes for male manual workers. Almost none offers bonus and productivity schemes to female manual workers. The Financial Times estimate the total bill to settle similar sex discrimination and equal pay cases could reach £1.5 billion.
The GMB and UNISON both have significant histories of pursuing sex discrimination and equal pay claims on behalf of members and this could be the most significant yet.
Rodney Bickerstaffe, UNISON General Secretary, said: "Women manual workers are entitled to expect the same treatment as men when it comes to bonus payments. Other councils should now examine their pay rates and ensure they do not end up with similar equal pay claims."
John Edmonds, GMB General Secretary said: "The settlement is fair and is a victory for all women workers. We are delighted that common sense has prevailed."