In a groundbreaking decision, thousands of Next employees have won an equal pay claim against the national retailer, marking the first successful case of its kind against a major retailer. The employment tribunal ruled that the predominantly female sales consultant staff should receive the same pay as their male counterparts working in the warehouse, ending a legal struggle that spanned over six years and involved 3,540 claimants.
The tribunal concluded that Next failed to justify the pay disparity between the roles by not providing a “material factor” unrelated to sex discrimination. While Next argued that the difference in wages was due to the market rate for sales consultants versus warehouse operators, which they claimed was necessary to maintain business viability, the tribunal was not convinced.
Although the tribunal acknowledged that Next’s efforts to reduce costs and increase profits were not acts of “direct discrimination,” it found that these business reasons were insufficient to justify the lower pay for sales consultants. “There must usually be a more compelling business reason for such arrangements to be justifiable,” the tribunal stated.
Next has announced plans to appeal the ruling. This case is seen as a legal first for “undervalued” workers in the retail sector. Helen Scarsbrook, one of the three lead claimants and a Next employee of over 20 years, highlighted the challenges faced by retail workers. “Anyone who works in retail knows that it is a physically and emotionally tough job,” she said. “Customer service, in particular, is very demanding and we do that in addition to lots of other essential tasks that go to make Next a successful business. You become so used to having your work undervalued that you can easily start to doubt it yourself.”
In response to the ruling, Next emphasized that the tribunal dismissed the majority of claims, including all allegations of direct discrimination and issues related to bonus pay. “The tribunal expressed serious criticisms of the claimants’ expert evidence and overwhelmingly accepted the evidence of Next’s expert and fact witnesses,” the company said.
This landmark ruling could set a precedent as more claims are expected to follow. Law firm Leigh Day, which represented the Next workers, is also handling similar equal pay claims for over 112,000 employees at major supermarket chains, including Asda, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, and Co-op.
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