The Legislative Requirements that Impact Reward Practice
Equality Act 2010
The Equality Act 2010 is a key piece of legislation that significantly shapes how organisations design and implement their reward strategies. It combines and overrides existing anti-discrimination laws and is in place to give legal backing to protect individuals from being unfairly treated. A fundamental provision that applies to reward practice is the principle of equal pay for equal work, and this applies in that men and women doing equal work (like work, work rated as equivalent, or work of equal value) must be paid equal amounts and conditions except where the employer can successfully assert a material factor defence. This defence could include factors such as seniority, merit, or performance-related pay (Wilton, 2022). This law obliges organisations such as GreenFriendlyEco UK to assess their payment systems and remove any unwarranted differences that could create an opportunity for discrimination (ACAS, 2025). Failure to comply may result in expensive legal claims, a damaged reputation, and negatively impacted worker morale. Although GreenFriendlyEco UK might not meet this threshold, as a medium-sized business wanting to grow, it should ensure its pay systems are set up to withstand future scrutiny and instil a fair play and openness culture.
Working Time Regulations 1998
The Working Time Regulations 1998, which are based on the EU Working Time Directive, limit the number of hours one can work in a week and provide for rest breaks and holidays with pay (GOV.UK, 2010). Under this regulation, employees must not be required to work more than an average of 48 hours per week unless they voluntarily agree to opt out of this limit in writing. It also grants workers at least 28 days of paid leave for an annual holiday (ACAS, 2025). GreenFriendlyEco UK already provides 28 days of paid leave, which corresponds to the minimum requirement. Nevertheless, the company’s management needs to ensure that no additional work expectation, overtime arrangement, or performance incentive is used in violation of these rules. Compliance does not just mean compliance; it also improves employee well-being and work-life balance, positively impacting retention and engagement (Broadway, 2024).
Gender Pay Gap Reporting Regulations (2017)
The Equality Act 2010 (Gender Pay Gap Information) Regulations 2017 require all organisations with 250 or more workers to publish annual gender pay gap data to discover and resolve inequalities. Multiple BBC female presenters, including Carrie Gracie, took action against the organisation because they received substantially lower pay than their male colleagues in comparable roles during the BBC Gender Pay Gap Case (2017). These developments required the BBC to examine its payroll system, which generated salary revisions and increased openness to payment standards (Bell, 2011). Organisations that fail to report gender pay gap information face financial penalties and negative public perception, which diminishes employee trust and affects staff retention rates. Organisations must maintain transparent payment systems with fair practices to prevent equality violations and protect themselves from financial and legal penalties.
Conclusion
The current reward structure at GreenFriendlyEco UK is insufficient to solve the high staff turnover and low morale within the company. Including intrinsic and extrinsic awards, basing pay on results and recognising a job well done can strongly benefit how engaged and committed team members are. Believing in a total reward approach, visible pay and being in line with industry standards will lead to fairness and competitiveness. Company success will be better assured when organisations implement job evaluation techniques and follow the required legal rules. A new reward approach benefits the company’s culture and leads to improved results.
