UPDATE: After sending this email a few minutes ago, I came across this article by Darren Newman which explains the proposals (as according to the Guardian) far better than me, and also beats them up with a very big stick.
=== Original email below ===
According to this report in yesterday’s Guardian, the Labour party has drafted a Race Equality Bill which extends equal pay rights to BAME and disabled workers. At the moment, the equal pay regime only applies on grounds of sex.
This is arguably shadow boxing. If a BAME employee is paid less than a white employee on grounds of their race, they can recover the difference as an ordinary race discrimination claim. (Granted, there are technical differences in the legal tests, but those will only change the result in a tiny minority of cases).
Other changes said to be in the draft Bill introduce ethnicity pay gap reporting, ensuring police officers and staff undertake anti-racism training, and reviewing the school curriculum to make sure it is diverse.
According to The Guardian, a formal announcement is expected from the Labour party today (Monday 5 February). For members of the HR Inner Circle, April’s audio seminar covers the changes we can expect from a Labour government, and what employers should be doing now to get ready. This month’s audio seminar, released next week, is on Neurodiversity at Work, and next month’s is on Dismissing Problem Employees.
[Thanks to Paul Livingston of Outer Temple Chambers for telling me about this]
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