Sainsbury’s has failed to get groups of equal pay claims struck out, allowing the claims to proceed.
The claims, which relate to the difference in pay between Sainsbury’s store workers and warehouse workers, had been issued in groups on the same claim form for submission to the employment tribunal. Sainsbury’s argued that multiple claims could not be put on one form.
The Birmingham Employment Tribunal dismissed the arguments and ruled that the claims could move forward following the battle over the technicalities of the claim forms.
The issue related to Rule 6 of the Employment Tribunals Rules of Procedure 2013. Rule 6 sets out the steps the tribunal could take if different equal pay claims are put on one claim form.
Sainsbury’s claimed that the tribunals should strike out the claims where the women in stores did different jobs. However, it was successfully argued that the tribunal should let the claims continue because it made no difference how the claims were dealt with – it doesn’t change how the tribunal processes the claims, the types of claim that Sainsbury’s have to defend, the witness evidence needed or the length of the hearing.
The tribunal ruled that it will use its discretion and allow the 141 claims to continue. Had Sainsbury’s been successful, the amount of compensation that could be recovered by the claimants would be limited.
Linda Wong, solicitor at Leigh Day, said: “We are pleased that the tribunal has used their common sense to allow these claims to proceed. Sainsbury’s had tried to get them thrown out on a technicality that made absolutely no difference to the issues in the case but limited the amount they would have to pay out to hard working staff.”
Now that the employment tribunal has made its ruling, the case against Sainsbury’s will proceed, with the next stage being to determine which of the higher paid jobs in the warehouse form part of the comparison for equal pay.