Asda workers advance to the final stage of their equal pay battle

The Employment Tribunal found in favour of 12 out of 14 women acting as ‘lead claimants’ for the store workers in the action and determined that they have established equal value with some of the lead male comparators.  The judgment covers the time period between August 2008 and June 2014. 

The decision means tens of thousands of Asda shop floor workers have now won two out of the three stages of their equal pay claim – confirming that their roles are comparable and of equal value. The third stage requires Asda to provide a reason, not related to sex, for the difference in pay. 

Lawyers at Leigh Day who represent more than 60,000 workers in the Asda equal pay claim are disappointed by the Tribunal ruling that two roles (Personal Shopper and Shop Floor Assistant – Edible Grocery)  were not of equal value for the time period looked at. They are carefully considering this part of the judgment and will be exploring all available options, including the possibility of an appeal.  

Launched in 2014, the claim is about whether the shop floor workers, who are mainly women, are paid less than distribution workers, who are predominantly men, contrary to equal pay law.  If successful, individual claims could be worth around £20,000.  

The case, which represents the largest ever private sector equal pay claim, will now move to the final stage of the claim where Asda will have to show that there is a reason for the pay difference between store workers and warehouse workers which is not based on sex. Lawyers will also work on applying the Tribunal’s findings to the other claimant job roles (those that were not covered by the 14 lead claimant roles). 

Last year NEXT workers were successful in their equal pay claim following a ruling by the Employment Tribunal in August that the national retailer failed to show that the difference in their pay rates for warehouse workers who are predominantly men, in comparison to pay rates for shop floor workers, who are overwhelmingly women, was not sex discrimination. The NEXT shop floor workers had previously been successful in arguing that the roles were comparable and of equal value.  

Leigh Day is currently representing over 37,000 workers in similar claims against Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and the Co-op. These cases are at various stages of the legal process. 

Asda employs more than 127,000 shop floor workers across its 1,200 plus stores in the UK, with the number of current and former workers joining the legal claim increasing weekly. The final compensation value of the claim, if successful, could be as much as £1.2 billion.  

The claimants are represented by Leigh Day partners Lauren Lougheed and Linda Wong.  

Lauren Lougheed said:  

“This is a significant step for the thousands of Asda store workers who have established equal value. Our clients have fought for over ten years to achieve recognition of the value of their work and I am so pleased for them. We hope that Asda will now focus on resolving their cases quickly, rather than prolonging the process.   

“Today’s ruling will of course be bitterly disappointing for our clients who work in the job roles that were not found to be of equal value. We believe that a strong case was put forward for these roles, and we will be discussing our next steps with those affected.  

“Equal pay is a fundamental right, and this decision takes us one step closer to ensuring that the hardworking colleagues in Asda’s stores are not undervalued and are paid what they are owed.  

“Our clients’ demand is clear: they want to be treated fairly. This means being paid the same as their colleagues in other parts of the business, who do work of equal value.”  

Linda Wong said:  

“Our clients have always believed that the work carried out on the shop floor is of equal value to the work done in Asda’s distribution centres. The tribunal has now confirmed that many of their roles are, in fact, equal.  

“We know Asda has publicly cited financial pressures in the past as a reason for resisting these claims. However, the company’s recent financial reports paint a different picture, showing that it remains a profitable business capable of addressing pay disparities without significant hardship. It must not be forgotten that the people working on the shop floor are the lifeblood of their business and without them Asda would not be making any money at all.”   

Nadine Houghton, GMB National Officer, said:

“This is a historic step towards securing equal pay justice for tens of thousands of Asda workers, but it is tainted with bitter disappointment for those who now face an appeal. 
“These women have been fighting for what they are owed for more than ten years and are close to ending the era of retailers systematically undervaluing women.

“It’s telling many of the roles judged to be of equal value are the traditional shop floor roles women have held in retail for so long.

“It’s a crushing blow that some roles were not considered of equal value and we will be discussing next steps, including the possibility of an appeal.

“GMB now calls on Asda to stop wasting time and money dragging this case through the courts and get round the table with us to agree a settlement.” 

See a timeline of the claim so far

A briefing document with additional details can be found here