// Tesco faces £2.5bn bill after EU Court of Justice backs Tesco workers in dispute over equal pay
// Thousands of shopworkers, most of whom are women, have accused Tesco of paying them up to £3 less per hour
// This is in comparison to Tesco warehouse workers, most of whom are men
The European Union Court of Justice has indicated that pay conditions for Tesco shopworkers can be compared with those of distribution staff, in a blow to the Big 4 giant.
The ruling means the grocery giant now faces the prospect of a £2.5 billion bill after the court ruled that EU rules guaranteeing equal pay for male and female workers can be invoked in the dispute over pay.
Thousands of shopworkers, most of whom are women, have accused Tesco of paying them up to £3 less per hour than warehouse workers, who are mostly men.
READ MORE:
- What Asda staff’s Supreme Court victory means for retail
- Asda shop floor staff win Supreme Court fight for equal pay
- Tesco loses appeal to withhold key information from staff in equal pay fight
The court said the legal test for comparability was one of three tests involved in the case, which could take years to conclude.
The decision comes three months after more than 40,000 Asda workers won their equal pay case against their supermarket bosses.
Law firm Leigh Day represents more than 50,000 supermarket shop floor workers, and has been leading an equal pay campaign against several major grocers.
“This judgment reinforces the Supreme Court’s ruling that the roles of shop floor workers can be compared to those of their colleagues in distribution centres for the purposes of equal pay,” Leigh Day partner Kiran Daurka said.
“For a long time, employers have argued that UK law in this area is unclear, but this judgment is simple: if there is a single body responsible for ensuring equality, the roles are comparable.
“Clarification from the CJEU confirms that this single-source test can be relied upon by people in the UK bringing an equal-value claim.
“This means that employers can no longer hide behind the grey areas of UK law.”
A Tesco spokesman said: “The jobs in our stores and distribution centres are different.
“These roles require different skills and demands which lead to variations in pay – but this has absolutely nothing to do with gender.
“We reward our colleagues fairly for the jobs they do and work hard to ensure that the pay and benefits we offer are fair, competitive and sustainable.
“These claims are extremely complex and will take many years to reach a conclusion.
“We continue to strongly defend these claims.”
with PA Wires
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette’s free daily email newsletter
