Equal Pay and Flexible Working Bill laid before Parliament

The Government’s Equal Pay and Flexible Working Bill, which amends the Equal Pay Act 1970, received its first reading in the House of Lords this week.

The Bill contains three proposals:

• The Bill makes it unlawful for men and women to be paid differently for the same work (or work of equal value or work rated as equivalent), unless doing so can be objectively justified because of ‘reasonable’ factors.
• The Bill provides that if an employer loses an equal pay case brought by an individual employee, the employer must carry out a general equal pay audit and make the results of the audit publicly available.
• In May 2008 the Government indicated that the right to request flexible working would be extended to all those with parental responsibility for children aged 16 and under. The Bill will carry this forward, despite some reports that it could be delayed because of the economic climate.

There is a clause in the Bill which states it will come into effect two months after it is passed. It is thought that it will be passed on 6 February 2009, allowing the Government to fulfil its stated intention to implement the flexible working changes on 6 April 2009.

Business Secretary Peter Mandelson told the House of Lords:

“Essential to our continued competitiveness will be a regulatory framework that supports and does not stifle the conditions for business success. In these difficult times, it is more important than ever that we only ask businesses to adapt to new regulations where the case is compelling.”

No date has yet been set for a second reading of the Bill in the House of Lords.