The pay gap between men and women – which is just as prevalent in the legal profession as in other spheres – will not close unless there is a radical rethink of equality laws, the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) said this month.

Recent research by the Commission revealed that two-thirds of organisations have still not carried out an equal pay review to check for fair pay, and have no plans to do so.


The research showed that the number of equal pay reviews performed has flat-lined since 2002, with employers’ appetite for such reviews actually likely to decrease rather than increase in the future.


Alison Parkinson, Law Society Council member for the Association of Women Solicitors, said: ‘The pay gap is affecting women in the solicitors’ profession just as much as other women, and recent Law Society statistics confirm that the pay gap does still exist for women solicitors. Law firms are saying that that they are no different [to other sectors], but that doesn’t make it right.


‘Lawyers surely should be more compliant with the law than others. Ethical standards in terms of treatment of their staff should be higher than the rest of the business world, and the figures show that they are not.’


Ms Parkinson added: ‘Ever- increasing numbers of women are coming into the profession, and firms that do address the issue of equal pay and can demonstrate their success in this area will benefit, because they will keep their women solicitors. It is the forward-thinking firms that get on with equal pay audits and the like – rather than having to be dragged kicking to do it – that will benefit in the years to come.’


The EOC called for a new duty on employers for action. The new law would focus on ‘achievable outcomes’, and would be ‘evidence based’ and targeted towards the causes of the pay gap. Every employer would be required to carry out a ‘diagnostic equality check’ to find out exactly what action was needed.


Employers would be required to be transparent and accountable, consulting with unions, the workforce and shareholders on the equality check and action plan. Smaller businesses would have a programme of support to help them with the process.


Under the EOC’s proposals, where an equality check revealed a possible breach of the Equal Pay Act 1970, the employer would be required to conduct a full equal pay review.


Jenny Watson, acting EOC chairwoman, said that 30 years on, it was clear that the Act had ‘reached the end of its usefulness’. She said: ‘The pay gap is simply not closing. It has been stuck at 40% for women who work part-time for the past 25 years. Failing to act to reform the law is no longer an option.‘