A report published last week by the Equality and Human Rights Commission has revealed what many people have long suspected - that women in some City financial institutions receive a lot less in bonuses than their male colleagues. Around 80 per cent less, in fact.

This is hardly good news for women in the City, at a time when bonuses are already generally likely to be lower, or non-existent, at year-end.

As the report indicates, the average age of City workers could well be a factor. A large proportion of female City professionals are in the age range of mid 20s to mid 30s - a time when women are quite likely to have child care responsibilities.

Women in the City have in the past brought, and won, claims for sex discrimination for receiving a bonus unjustifiably lower than male colleagues. Such claims are, however, rare, and very few ever make it to an Employment Tribunal. This is often due to the employee being concerned about the effect of litigation on her career, a lack of resources to bring the claim, or a lack of tangible evidence. The Commission's report may, however, give courage to those considering taking action when they see how widespread the problem is.

In 2003, the Employment Appeal Tribunal made it clear that 'no Tribunal should be seen to condone a City bonus culture involving secrecy and / or lack of transparency'. City employers should have heeded the warning. If they want to avoid discrimination claims, they should inform employees of the criteria on which their bonus is based, and explain to each employee why they have been awarded their particular payout. At the very least, employees will need to keep a paper trail of decisions made, and be ready to explain the rationale behind a bonus decision to an employee if requested.

Any female worker who believes that gender was a contributing factor in her bonus award should gather as much information as she can from her employer around the decisions taken to award her bonus compared with that of male colleagues. The first step would be for the employee to raise a grievance internally with her employer, asking them to explain the reasons for her award.

The cloak of secrecy surrounding payments can be lifted. Employees are entitled to ask employers probing questions as to what decisions were taken regarding the award of their bonus - when, by whom and why. Questions can also be asked about the award of bonus for male colleagues doing a similar job to them. In addition, under the Data Protection Act, employees can ask for copies of all data the employer holds on them.

Based on this information, the employee can then assess whether her employer had a lawful reason for awarding her a lower bonus than others, and whether incriminating evidence may lead to a strong claim. Like most decisions made in the City, it is a question of risk versus reward.

Harriet Bowtell is a solicitor in the Employment Team at Russell Jones & Walker

http://www.rjw.co.uk/

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