Male colleague earning more?

Yes there is. The Equal Pay Act, which was introduced in 1965 and amended in 1984, gives you the right to be paid as much as your male colleague, if your job is the same or broadly similar.

The best place to start is to contact your union, the Citizens Advice Bureau or the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC). In October 1999, the EOC launched a three-year campaign for equal pay. At the time of the survey, women working full-time were only earning 81% of the average hourly earnings of full-time male workers. The EOC’s campaign, Valuing Women aims to close this gender pay gap by eliminating sex discrimination in payment systems.

The EOC can help you by telling you more about your rights under equal pay law. They can give you advice to help you to sort out the situation on your own. They can advise you about taking your case further under the equal pay law and, in some cases, can give legal or financial assistance. What the EOC cannot give you is a legal ruling – only the courts can do that.

When you are comparing your job with that done by your male colleague, you should be clear about all the similarities and any differences. Be prepared to demonstrate all the elements that your job has in common with that of the man. If there are any differences, can you show that they are not significant? You employer may be able to give some valid reason to explain the pay gap between you and your colleague. You should bear in mind that this is a very technical area of law and, given the likely repercussions unleashed within your workplace if a tribunal finds against your employer, your employer is likely to fight hard to resist your claim.

The EOC has an informal checklist to help you to gather the facts. It also publishes leaflets giving examples of successful and unsuccessful claims. These may help you to decide if your suspicions are well founded.