The Equal Pay Act 1970 (Amendment) Regulations 2003
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | SI 2003/1656 |
2003 No. 1656
SEX DISCRIMINATION
The Equal Pay Act 1970 (Amendment) Regulations 2003
Made 26th June 2003
Laid before Parliament 27th June 2003
Coming into force 19th July 2003
The Secretary of State, being a Minister designated1for the purposes of section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 19722in relation to measures relating to discrimination, in the exercise of the powers conferred by that section, hereby makes the following Regulations:—
Citation, commencement and interpretation
1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Equal Pay Act 1970 (Amendment) Regulations 2003.
(2) These Regulations shall come into force on 19th July 2003 (“the commencement date”).
(3) In these Regulations “the Act” means the Equal Pay Act 19703.
Application
2.—(1) The following provisions—
(a)
(a) paragraph (2) of regulation 3, and
(b)
(b) regulation 4,
apply for the purpose of determining whether an employment tribunal may make a determination in proceedings instituted on or after the commencement date (subject to paragraph (2) below).
(2) Those provisions do not so apply if the last day on which the woman was employed in the employment falls more than six months before the commencement date.
(3) If those provisions do so apply so as to enable an employment tribunal to make a determination in proceedings in a stable employment case (within the meaning given by virtue of regulation 4), the determination may not relate to any non-qualifying contract of employment forming part of the stable employment relationship.
(4) For the purposes of paragraph (3) above a contract of employment is a non-qualifying contract of employment if it ended more than six months before the commencement date.
(5) The following provisions—
(a)
(a) paragraph (3) of regulation 3,
(b)
(b) regulation 5,
(c)
(c) paragraph (4) of regulation 6, and
(d)
(d) regulation 8,
apply in relation to proceedings instituted on or after the commencement date.
(6) The following provisions—
(a)
(a) paragraph (3) of regulation 6, and
(b)
(b) regulation 7,
apply for the purpose of determining whether an employment tribunal may make a determination on a complaint presented to it on or after the commencement date (subject to paragraph (7) below).
(7) Those provisions do not so apply if the last day of the woman’s period of service falls more than nine months before the commencement date.
Amendments to the time limits under section 2 of the Act
3.—(1) Section 2 of the Act (disputes as to, and enforcement of, requirement of equal treatment) is amended as follows.
(2) For subsection (4) substitute—
“4 No determination may be made by an employment tribunal in the following proceedings—
(a) on a complaint under subsection (1) above,
(b) on an application under subsection (1A) above, or
(c) on a reference under subsection (2) above,
unless the proceedings are instituted on or before the qualifying date (determined in accordance with section 2ZA below).”
(3) For subsection (5) substitute—
“5 A woman shall not be entitled, in proceedings brought in respect of a contravention of a term modified or included by virtue of an equality clause (including proceedings before an employment tribunal), to be awarded any payment by way of arrears of remuneration or damages—
(a) in proceedings in England and Wales, in respect of a time earlier than the arrears date (determined in accordance with section 2ZB below), and
(b) in proceedings in Scotland, in respect of a time before the period determined in accordance with section 2ZC below.”
4. After section 2 of the Act insert—
““Qualifying date” under section 2(4)
2ZA.—(1) This section applies for the purpose of determining the qualifying date, in relation to proceedings in respect of a woman’s employment, for the purposes of section 2(4) above.
(2) In this section—
“concealment case” means a case where—
(a) the employer deliberately concealed from the woman any fact (referred to in this section as a “qualifying fact”)—
(i) which is relevant to the contravention to which the proceedings relate, and
(ii) without knowledge of which the woman could not reasonably have been expected to institute the proceedings, and
(b) the woman did not discover the qualifying fact (or could not with reasonable diligence have discovered it) until after—
(i) the last day on which she was employed in the employment, or
(ii) the day on which the stable employment relationship between her and the employer ended,
(as the case may be);
“disability case” means a case where the woman was under a disability at any time during the six months after—
(a) the last day on which she was employed in the employment,
(b) the day on which the stable employment relationship between her and the employer ended, or
(c) the day on which she discovered (or could with reasonable diligence have discovered) the qualifying fact deliberately concealed from her by the employer (if that day falls after the day referred to in paragraph (a) or (b) above, as the case may be),
(as the case may be);
“stable employment case” means a case where the proceedings relate to a period during which a stable employment relationship subsists between the woman and the employer, notwithstanding that the period includes any time after the ending of a contract of employment when no further contract of employment is in force;
“standard case” means a case which is not—
(a) a stable employment case,
(b) a concealment case,
(c) a disability case, or
(d) both a concealment and a disability case.
(3) In a standard case, the qualifying date is the date falling six months after the last day on which the woman was employed in the employment.
(4) In a case which is a stable employment case (but not also a concealment or a disability case or both), the qualifying date is the date falling six months after the day on which the stable employment relationship ended.
(5) In a case which is a concealment case (but not also a disability case), the qualifying date is the date falling six months after the day on which the woman discovered the qualifying fact in question (or could with reasonable diligence have discovered it).
(6) In a case which is a disability case (but not also a concealment case), the qualifying date is the date falling six months after the day on which the woman ceased to be under a disability.
(7) In a case which is both a concealment and a disability case, the qualifying date is the later of the dates referred to in subsections (5) and (6) above.”
5. After section 2ZA of the Act (inserted by regulation 4) insert—
““Arrears date” in proceedings in England and Wales under section 2(5)
2ZB.—(1) This section applies for the purpose of determining the arrears date, in relation to an award of any payment by way of arrears of remuneration or damages in proceedings in England and Wales in respect of a woman’s employment, for the purposes of section 2(5)(a) above.
(2) In this section—
“concealment case” means a case where—
(a) the employer deliberately concealed from the woman any fact—
(i) which is relevant to the contravention to which the proceedings relate, and
(ii) without knowledge of which the woman could not reasonably have been expected to institute the proceedings, and
(b) the woman instituted the proceedings within six years of the day on which she discovered the fact (or could with reasonable diligence have discovered it);
“disability case” means a case where—
(a) the woman was under a disability at the time of the contravention to which the proceedings relate, and
(b) the woman instituted the proceedings within six years of the day on which she ceased to be under a disability;
“standard case” means a case which is not—
(a) a concealment case,
(b) a disability case, or
(c) both.
(3) In a standard case, the arrears date is the date falling six years before the day on which the proceedings were instituted.
(4) In a case which is a concealment or a disability case or both, the arrears date is the date of the contravention.
Determination of “period” in proceedings in Scotland under section 2(5)
2ZC.—(1) This section applies, in relation to an award of any payment by way of arrears of remuneration or damages in proceedings in Scotland in respect of a woman’s employment, for the purpose of determining the period mentioned in section 2(5)(b) above.
(2) Subject to subsection (3) below, that period is the period of five years which ends on the day on which the proceedings were instituted, except that the five years shall not be regarded as running during—
(a)
(a) any time when the woman was induced, by reason of fraud on the part of, or error induced by the words or conduct of, the employer or any person acting on his behalf, to refrain from commencing proceedings (not being a time after she could with reasonable diligence have discovered the fraud or error), or
(b)
(b) any time when she was under a disability.
(3) If, after regard is had to the exceptions in subsection (2) above, that period would include any time more than twenty years before the day...
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