GMB Rounds off 2007 Lodging 25,000 Equal Pay Claims for £250M and 5% Membership Growth in Public Services

GMB today announced that it had notched up its 25,000th equal pay claim against local government and NHS employers throughout the UK. The claims which are all yet to be settled are estimated to be worth £250 million. Typically they cover women cleaners, catering workers, school support staff and admin workers who compare themselves to men in similar jobs who earn more. The 25,000 live claims are on top of the many tens of thousands that have been settled through negotiation or legal proceedings in the last decade as GMB has pursued employers who fail to implement equal pay.

This announcement coincides with the publication of a new GMB analysis of the gender pay gap league of 240 occupations for full time workers in the UK using recently published data from the April 2007 Annual Survey of Earnings and Hours from the Office of National Statistics (ONS). This data shows that for all occupations for full time workers the gender pay gap amounts to an average of £9,655 per year in favour of men. The widest gender pay gap is £49,295 for financial managers and chartered secretaries. Next widest is pharmacy managers £25,697 followed by financial institution managers £20,500 with £19,916 gap for management consultants, actuaries and economists. At the other end of the league are public relations officers where women earn £5,519 more than men in the same job. The study also shows that there are now 23 occupations in the UK where to all intents and purposes equality of pay between men and women doing that job has all but been achieved. These include security guards, social workers, graphic designers, waiting staff, kitchen and catering assistants, shelf fillers, physiotherapists, ambulance staff, hospital porters, laundry staff, train drivers, call centre staff and civil servant administrative grades. For the full list of all occupations GMB Press Office from rose.conroy@gmb.org.uk .

GMB National Secretary Brian Strutton said, “Our low paid women members are often unwilling to make a claim for equal pay, which is a shame because it is their legal right. We hope that by showing the scale and size of our work in this area that we can encourage more women to let GMB fight for their right to equal pay. As the study shows there is still much more to be done.

One of the highlights of 2007 was the House of Lords victory for St Helens council dinner ladies who had been victimised by their employer for seeking equal pay. GMB was pleased to win justice for these women and to show up St Helens council for their behaviour – all credit to these members for setting such an example of courage and conviction.

At the same time the GMB reported net membership growth of over 5% in public services during 2007. Who says unions are dying out? Our role is more important than ever”

Ends

Contact: Brian Strutton, GMB National Secretary on 07860 606137 or GMB Press Office: Steve Pryle 07921 289880 or Rose Conroy on 07974 251823.

Notes to Editors

1 This massive wave of litigation of GMB claims is managed through the union’s nine regions and four firms of solicitors – Thompsons, Digby Brown, EAD and Whittles.

2 The earnings figures for all occupations in the UK are shown in the table availbale from rose conroy GMB Press Office on rose.conroy@gmb.org.uk . All figures are also expressed as a percentage of the UK average of £29,999 for ease of comparison. The gender gap is shown in the salary difference in £’s and also in percentage gap between where males and females fall in the national pay league.

Click here to view full table - Gender pay gap for full time workers by occupation – ranked from widest gender pay difference in £ and %