Mindblowing - apparently equal pay is the reason Birmingham City Council is bankrupt....

28 replies

GingerIsBest · 06/09/2023 08:43

this article today just blows my mind.

Ladies - because you asked for fair pay, everyone else is suffering.

To be fair, the article itself is more balanced than the headline but FFS.....

Birmingham pays the penalty for Supreme Court’s ruling on equal pay

When the Supreme Court ruled in favour of 174 female former Birmingham city council employees in 2012, lawyers predicted that the decision would have “huge implications” (Mario Ledwith writes).More than a decade on, the ramifications of the ruling appe...

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/birmingham-pays-the-penalty-for-supreme-courts-ruling-on-equal-pay-wlkfkf6kj

OP posts:

Notaflippinclue · 14/09/2023 18:36

Birmingham has the highest unemployment rate in England

nettie434 · 15/09/2023 07:40

LetMeGoogleThat · 07/09/2023 11:58

I was working for BCC when this started, the massive costs are mainly due to the council not accepting the claims but fighting the women via the courts. The bill is the women’s costs, BCC costs as well as the backpay. The sheer arrogant attitude of council at the time is what compelled so many women to get involved. Also, part of the problem is the vast scale of BCC. It’s the UK’s largest LA and has been dysfunctional for decades, with a revolving door of corrupt, white middle aged men in the leadership roles. They never seemed to have a problem in paying them off tho…. I have actually been in a meeting where two very senior leaders, suggested they 'Take it outside' FFS

Excellent summary LetMeGoogleThat. The original claim involved fewer than 200 workers and it would have cost a comparatively small amount of money to pay the claimants back pay and regrade others.

squirrelslikenuts · 18/09/2023 00:34

That's a bit harsh.

Many councils are struggling to provide a wide range of services, whilst being underfunded for years by the government. The council tax and rates income are not enough for growing demand, most councils are only able to provide the minimal services.
Yes, senior staff are being paid high salaries, compared to frontline workers.

But, it is this Tory government that keeps changing the goal posts and restructuring access to services every 18 months or even less.
Most council workers are doing their best, considering the demand and lack of resources, and change if leadrship. Yes, there are those workers that are getting away with doing as little as possible, just like many of our MPs and quite a few workers/managers in private organisations.

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