Case lodged as male bosses set to collect more than a million in bonuses
More than 30 female managers at Network Rail have launched what could become a multi-million pound equal pay claim backed by the Transport Salaried Staffs Association union (TSSA).
In its claim, the TSSA said that female managers are being paid between £3,000 and £4,000 a year less than male colleagues doing the same job.
If the union wins the case there are a further 3,000 women at the company who would be in line for pay rises to bring their wages up to that of their male counterparts. TSSA said that the final bill could be more than £10 million a year if it wins at the Leeds Employment Tribunal this autumn.
The case, thought to be the largest pay claim in rail history, comes as bonuses for senior male bosses last year exceeded the £1 million mark.
Bonuses have been awarded despite the operator missing its punctuality target of 92 per cent of trains running on time over the past five years. In fact, only 86.9 per cent of trains ran to timetable since 2009, according to the Office of Rail Regulation, which fined Network Rail £53 million for the failure.
Bonuses of £350,000 with a further £400,000 in long-term awards for senior executives have swelled the payouts to more than a million.
In response the TSSA plans to stage a protest against the awards during a meeting in Reading tomorrow, where the public, acting as shareholders, will vote on whether to approve the payments.
Lorraine Ward, union assistant general secretary, said: "It is simply outrageous that a taxpayer funded firm should reward those at the top with such huge amounts while at the same time discriminating against thousands of their own staff who happen to be women.
"As a soon to be fully public sector firm, it should reward everyone the same regardless of gender. Perhaps the male bosses just don't get the full picture sitting in their comfortable men-only first class gravy train.”
In response to the pay claim Network Rail said: "We are committed to equal opportunities and fairness and equity in its pay. We are working hard, in partnership with our trade unions, to address any legacy imbalances within our pay structure. Those discussions continue."