LABOUR members have rubbished figures showing female Wyre Forest District Council workers earn more than men for failing to take into account outsourced low-paid jobs.

The Conservative-led authority announced women earned on average 10 per cent more than male colleagues adding there were more females in senior management roles.

But Wyre Forest Labour said services such as cleaning, catering and leisure have been taken over by agency contractors with many of the roles, predominantly filled by women, paying minimum wage.

They added that, while it was to be welcomed that more women held the high-earning top jobs, the council should return services back in house to ensure real parity through collective pay bargaining with the unions.

Stephen Brown, of Wyre Forest Labour, said: “The story about women’s pay being more than men fails to factor in the number of outsourced jobs the council funds.

“It’s hardly a women’s world for female cleaners, catering & leisure workers - these are now agency staff and on minimum and low wage.

“So, of course the council figures look good, they’ve removed a number of bottom rungs of mostly female staff who would otherwise sit below those lower paid manual and mostly male workers such as refuse collectors.

“Equal pay claims have centred around parity for cleaners verses refuse collectors as Work of same value.

“Plus, the rates for the actual council staff left are determined by union collective pay bargaining that the Tories would prefer to ditch.

“It’s actually really great there are more women in good paid top jobs but the pay figures are actually skewed.

“Outsourcing is the real story here, and the lack of employment rights and pay parity for those female workers now ‘employed’ by such council funded contractors.

“How about the council looking at ensuring a proper living wage in its dealings with contractors?

“That, and returning services in-house so workers come under collective pay bargaining by the unions. Only then will they be able to properly address the gender pay issue in a fair way.”