The Government and Equalities Office (GEO) has published a toolkit for employers which is aimed at helping close the gender pay gap. The toolkit sets out a "to-do" list containing four recommended steps:
Calculate and publish gender pay gap information as required by law, in line with the relevant guidance.
- Analyse data to see how improvement can be achieved
- Draw up and commit to an action plan
- Monitor progress and assign a member of the senior leadership to produce quarterly reports.
Meanwhile, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has published its draft enforcement strategy for pursuing large private, voluntary and public sector employers who fail to comply with their gender pay reporting duties. It has also opened a consultation on its strategy which will close on 2 February.
Although at first instance the EHRC will seek to engage cooperatively and informally with employers who are in breach, they propose using their wider enforcement powers to ensure compliance by:
- Entering into written agreements with private, public and voluntary sector employers who are in breach, with a view to suspending other enforcement action
- Issuing unlawful act notices to private and voluntary sector employers who are in breach and have failed to comply with previous written agreements. The notices will require employers to create an action plan to remedy their breach which, if ignored, can be enforced through a court order
- Seeking unlimited "level 5" fines and summary convictions for those employers who have failed to comply with subsequent court orders and formal notices
This article is taken from HR Law – January 2018.
