Midlothian Council
Midlothian Council is running a series of hearings to deal with the supplemental grievances lodged by Stefan Cross.
The supplemental grievances have been lodged only as a precaution - they are not strictly necessary, in our view, because the employers are very clear - and have been all along - about the points that are in dispute.
The issues raised with Midlothian (and other council employers) are:
1 Why do a wide range of traditional male jobs get paid so much more than their female colleagues?
2 What are the exact differences in pay between the male and female jobs?
3 What levels of bonus payments do the various male jobs receive?
4 Why do only the traditional male jobs receive these big bonuses?
5 How does the council justify the big differences in pay?
Mark Irvine went along to one of the Midlothian hearings - what became clear very quickly is that council officials are going through the motions.
Midlothian has no proper defence and no arguments to justify the blatant pay discrimination that women workers in Midlothian have had to put up with for years.
The council has now released details of their bonus schemes - which show that many male groups have been routinely paid up to 48% bonus on top of their basic pay for years - with the knowledge and agreement of the trade unions.
Yet, the council and the trade unions have the barefaced cheek - to say they believe in equality and equal opportunities.
The supplemental grievances have been lodged only as a precaution - they are not strictly necessary, in our view, because the employers are very clear - and have been all along - about the points that are in dispute.
The issues raised with Midlothian (and other council employers) are:
1 Why do a wide range of traditional male jobs get paid so much more than their female colleagues?
2 What are the exact differences in pay between the male and female jobs?
3 What levels of bonus payments do the various male jobs receive?
4 Why do only the traditional male jobs receive these big bonuses?
5 How does the council justify the big differences in pay?
Mark Irvine went along to one of the Midlothian hearings - what became clear very quickly is that council officials are going through the motions.
Midlothian has no proper defence and no arguments to justify the blatant pay discrimination that women workers in Midlothian have had to put up with for years.
The council has now released details of their bonus schemes - which show that many male groups have been routinely paid up to 48% bonus on top of their basic pay for years - with the knowledge and agreement of the trade unions.
Yet, the council and the trade unions have the barefaced cheek - to say they believe in equality and equal opportunities.
