Publication of Final Gender Pay Gap Regulations Delayed
The Equality Act 2010 (Gender Pay Information) Regulations 2016 (the Regulations) were expected to be published this summer and come into force on 1 October 2016.
However, the Government Equalities Office (GEO) has confirmed that the Regulations will be laid before Parliament in the autumn and will come into force in April 2017.
As the draft regulations stand, an employer will only be under a duty to report if they have 250 or more employees on the 'relevant date'. The relevant date is 30 April each year, commencing in 2017. This date is unlikely to be affected by the delay of the regulations' publication, therefore, the first gender pay gap reports will be due by the end of April 2018.
The consultation on the draft Regulations closed on 11 March 2016 and a response will be published by the GEO 'in due course'.