Equal Pay Refuseniks in Scotland's public sector

As the recession grips more and more of us by the throat of our finances and squeezes us ever closer to personal bankruptcy, homelessness, or worse, you would imagine that government and the public sector would be tearing up every policy carpet to uncover ways of easing the pain.  You would imagine.

And yet an obvious area where immediate action could be taken and which would put real money every month into the bank accounts of thousands of workers continues to bump up against the refuseniks who run most of Scotland's public sector.  Equal pay for women is not something suddenly sprung on the sector.  It has been a requirement for decades now.  The public sector has perfected the art of hand-wringing and always promising that particular jam tomorrow, next year, just as soon as ... whatever the management-speak buzz words are this year, going forward.  Looked at another way, for some decades now public bodies in Scotland have been cheating women out of money they have earned.  At a time of recession, that money could make a huge difference.

If you are thinking about moving jobs this year, you might want to know just who is performing best when it comes to equal pay for women.  The league table here should help you work out where to take your skills and be sure that your pay is not discriminated against simply because you happen to be a woman.

Just 10 out of 91 public sector employers report equal pay gaps within the + or- 5% limit recommended by the Equality & Human Rights Commission as a permissible differential.

Another 19 of the 91 bodies who know and report on their equal pay gaps of between +5.3% and -36%.

The rest of the 91 either don't know the equal pay gap or they just couldn't be bothered.  That's a lot of refuseniks, a lot of people happy to see equal pay for women stay something to be swept under the carpet when the EHRC comes to visit.

Next time you decide to change jobs, keep in mind the names of the top ten public sector bodies who do not deny a woman equal pay.

Napier University

National Library of Scotland

Orkney Council

South Ayrshire Council

NHS 24

National Museums of Scotland

 Aberdeen City Council

Queen Margaret University

Scottish Social Services Council

Creative Scotland