§ Julie MorganTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what information she has collated on the private sector companies that have carried out gender pay audits as recommended by the Code of Practice on Equal Pay 1997 to assess their compliance with the Equal Pay Act since 1997. [16140]
§ Ms Hewitt[holding answer 21 November 2001]: The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) Code of Practice on Equal Pay aims to provide practical guidance and to recommend good practice to employers. There is no legal obligation on employers to carry out gender pay audits under the Equal Pay Act.
Many employers have stated publicly that they have carried out, or are planning to carry out a pay review while others prefer to keep this information confidential. Information has not therefore been collated on private sector companies that have carried out gender pay audits.
A programme of action is under way to promote the practice of pay reviews in line with the EOC code of practice. We are funding the EOC to prepare a model for voluntary pay reviews which will offer a technical example for employers in how to review the pay of their male and female employees. Extra funding has been made available to trade unions for training representatives in equal pay issues in the workplace. We plan to introduce annual awards for employers which will recognise excellence in addressing equal pay and related issues.
§ Julie MorganTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what her priorities are for inclusion in the European Community forthcoming draft directive on equal pay. [16135]
§ Ms Hewitt[holding answer 21 November 2001]: No proposal to amend the Equal Pay Directive (75/117/EEC) has been made by the Commission nor are we aware that the Commission has laid down any firm timetable for doing so. If a proposal to amend the Equal Pay Directive is forthcoming, the Government will consider it very carefully, in the light of case law since the Directive came into force in 1975 and the results from the current process of amending the Equal Treatment Directive (76/207/EEC).
§ Julie MorganTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what progress has been made in revising the employment tribunal regulations concerning the hearing of equal pay cases, as outlined in the consultation document "Towards Equal Pay for Women". [16137]
§ Ms Hewitt[holding answer 21 November 2001]: Two proposals outlined in the consultation document "Towards Equal Pay for Women" have been implemented already. These are: simplifying multiple cases by requiring just one application (IT1 form) and one response from the employer (IT3 form) which has been given effect in the Employment Tribunals (Constitution and Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2001 that came into force in July 2001; and the Burden of Proof Regulations, which implement the Burden of Proof Directive 97/80/EC, which were laid 20 July and came into force on 12 October. The proposal to introduce a questionnaire procedure into the Equal Pay Act has been included in the Employment Bill that was introduced on 7 November 2001. The Government intend to implement those changes 150W that can be done by tribunal regulations when the Employment Bill has received Royal Assent and others will be carried out when parliamentary time permits.