Some of Britain’s largest retailers are facing the prospect of paying millions in damages due to a wave of equal pay lawsuits, many of which are backed by contentious litigation funding arrangements.
Last month saw the latest development in a long-standing legal case against Asda, where tens of thousands of employees are suing the supermarket. The claim argues that shopfloor workers, predominantly women, are paid less than warehouse workers, who are mainly men, in violation of equal pay legislation.
The Asda hearing comes on the heels of a legal victory for workers at Next, where an employment tribunal found that the retailer failed to justify the pay disparity between its warehouse staff, primarily men, and its shopfloor workers, who are mostly women. Next plans to appeal the ruling, which could see compensation amounting to £30 million for the claimants. The case was represented by law firm Leigh Day and funded by Harbour Litigation Funding.
Similar legal challenges have been launched against other retail giants, including Morrisons, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, and the Co-op. Leigh Day has confirmed that all its supermarket equal pay cases are being pursued under a damages-based agreement, involving over 100,000 retail employees across the UK. Harbour Litigation Funding is also supporting claims against Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, and Tesco.
David Williams, an employment partner at the City law firm Fox Williams, noted that the retail sector is under significant pressure. “There’s quite a degree of concern [in the retail industry] and I think it’s coming from a variety of sources. The liabilities are potentially enormous because there are lots of people in the sector and there’s a history of businesses not taking equal pay seriously,” he said. “This is a wake-up call for many companies to audit their practices and address salary disparities.”
Support authors and subscribe to content
This is premium stuff. Subscribe to read the entire article.
