A COURT ruling has dealt a blow to retail giant Tesco as it resists equal pay claims brought by thousands of mainly women workers.

The European Union Court of Justice (CJEU) said today that Tesco shopworkers can seek to use the pay and conditions of distribution staff as a comparator in cases being brought on their behalf by Leigh Day solicitors, acting on a no-win, no-fee basis.

The claimants say they have been paid up to £3 an hour less than warehouse staff, who are mostly men, for work that they contend is broadly similar.

Leigh Day partner Kiran Daurka said: “This judgement reinforces the Supreme Court’s ruling that the roles of shop-floor workers can be compared to those of their colleagues in distribution centres for the purposes of equal pay.

“For a long time, employers have argued that UK law in this area is unclear, but this judgement is simple: if there is a single body responsible for ensuring equality, the roles are comparable.

“Clarification from the CJEU confirms that this single-source test can be relied upon by people in the UK bringing an equal-value claim.

“This means that employers can no longer hide behind the grey areas of UK law.”

A Tesco spokesman said: “These roles require different skills and demands which lead to variations in pay, but this has absolutely nothing to do with gender.

“We reward our colleagues fairly for the jobs they do and work hard to ensure that the pay and benefits we offer are fair, competitive and sustainable.

“These claims are extremely complex and will take many years to reach a conclusion.

“We continue to strongly defend these claims.”

A spokesperson for shopworkers’ union Usdaw said: “An equal pay case looking to compare retail and distribution workers still has a long way to go and no decision has yet been made on whether the roles are of equal value.

“Usdaw continues to raise the issue of equal pay with employers and remains committed to seeking a negotiated outcome…

“Any Usdaw member who wants to seek legal assistance should contact the union.”