More than 1,300 female council workers are a step closer to sharing in �60m in back pay after a tribunal ruling. Unison said the equal pay hearing ruled in favour of the union's method of calculating back pay for workers employed by Cumbria County Council.
Unison General secretary, Dave Prentis, said it was "unlawful" that women workers had been paid less than men.
The council said it must make annual savings of �10m in coming years if it is to afford the back pay claims.
Money and stress
Mr Prentis said: "It is fundamentally unlawful that more than 1,000 women have been paid at a lower rate than male employees for equivalent work at Cumbria council.
"It is the employers' responsibility to immediately stop this injustice.
"But it is regrettable that the council would not settle through valid negotiation.
"Instead we all had to invest time, money and stress in going through the legal system."
Last year Cumbria County Council said meeting the bill for equal pay claims could have a detrimental effect on services and lead to job redundancies.
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