Can an employer offer different benefits to different staff?
A better benefit for a colleague is not automatically unlawful. Check what you were promised, why you were left out and the deadline to challenge it.
Your colleague gets better sick pay or a benefit you were promised. Do not start by arguing after a shift. Save your contract, the policy and the refusal, then ask in writing: “Which rule excludes me, and when was it agreed?” You may have a claim if the rule breaks your contract or discriminates. Tribunal deadlines can be short and a grievance does not stop the clock.
- 12 wks
- agency equal-treatment qualifying period in the same role
- £123.25
- maximum weekly SSP from 6 April 2026
- 8% / 3%
- usual minimum pension contributions, total and employer
Different packages are allowed
There is no general right to every colleague’s package. A care worker’s required qualification may be funded when an unrelated course is not; a warehouse supervisor may receive a different allowance from a picker. Responsibilities, specialist skills and location can explain differences. They do not excuse discrimination or override your contract.
Benefits include health cover, study grants, car allowances and enhanced sick pay. Some are optional when first offered. Others are contractual promises or statutory rights that your employer cannot bargain away.
The six limits on different benefits
| Rule | What to check |
|---|---|
| Discrimination | Protected characteristics, indirect disadvantage and reasonable adjustments |
| Part-time, fixed-term and agency protections | The relevant comparator and equal-treatment rule for each group |
| Equal pay | Different contractual benefits for people of different sexes doing equal work |
| Contract law | What was promised and whether it can lawfully change |
| Statutory minimums | Entitlements for everyone meeting the legal conditions |
| Age exceptions | Conditions for service-linked benefits and insured-benefit cut-offs |
A scheme can pass one check and fail another. A service rule permitted by age-discrimination law does not authorise a breach of contract.
When different benefits become discrimination
Section 39 of the Equality Act 2010 covers employment terms and access to benefits in Great Britain. The protected characteristics are age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation. Their legal tests differ.
Refusing your study grant because you are a woman is direct sex discrimination. Direct age discrimination has a justification defence if the employer shows a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim. Specific statutory exceptions also exist. An insurer’s preference for younger staff is not itself a defence.
Indirect discrimination concerns an apparently neutral rule. Medical cover restricted to staff working at least 30 hours could disadvantage women. If it puts women, and you as a woman, at a particular disadvantage, the employer must justify it as proportionate to a legitimate aim. Part-time protection applies separately.
A confidentiality clause cannot stop a relevant pay disclosure made to check whether pay or benefits differ because of a protected characteristic. It is not permission to publish everyone’s salary.
Role, grade and length of service
If you and an opposite-sex colleague do equal work, the sex equality clause can cover contractual car allowances, bonuses and health cover. Equal work includes like work, work rated as equivalent, and work of equal value. Different titles do not necessarily defeat your claim.
The employer needs a material factor explaining the difference that is not direct sex discrimination. A factor disadvantaging one sex may need objective justification. A location allowance cannot explain an unrelated medical-cover difference.
Schedule 9 paragraph 10 provides an age-discrimination exception for service-linked benefits. If the disadvantaged employee has five years’ service or less, no age justification is needed under that provision. Beyond five years, the employer must reasonably believe the rule fulfils a business need, such as rewarding loyalty. Benefits arising only when employment ends are excluded.
Example: service bands for medical cover
Cover starts after three years. With two years’ service, you cannot defeat that rule solely on age grounds under this exception. A contractual promise of immediate cover is different. With seven years’ service and a lower tier than a ten-year colleague, the employer needs the reasonable business-need belief. A written rationale is evidence, not a guaranteed defence.
Paragraph 14 permits an age cut-off for insurance or a related financial service provided through an insurer or other provider, not self-insured cover. The threshold is the greater of 65 and state pension age, not a universal 66th birthday. It does not erase contractual promises.
Part-time, fixed-term and agency staff
Part-time workers
The Part-time Workers Regulations prohibit less favourable treatment because you work part-time unless objectively justified. Compare a full-timer with the same employer, type of contract and same or broadly similar work. Pro rata applies where appropriate.
Example: a divisible training budget
A full-timer working 37.5 hours gets £2,400 for courses. You work 22.5 hours. A proportionate budget is £2,400 × 22.5 ÷ 37.5 = £1,440. Excluding you because you are part-time needs objective justification. If you both need the same mandatory qualification, 60% funding may be inappropriate.
Medical insurance or access to an assistance helpline does not divide like cash. Paying 60% of an insurance premium may leave you without usable cover.
Fixed-term employees
The Fixed-term Employees Regulations prohibit less favourable treatment because your contract is fixed-term, compared with a comparable permanent employee. Pay, pensions, benefits and training are covered. Objective justification is available, sometimes through an overall package at least as favourable. A fixed-term label alone does not justify less.
Agency workers
From day one, agency workers have rights to access collective facilities such as canteens, crèches and staff transport, subject to objective justification, and vacancy information. After 12 qualifying weeks in the same role with the same hirer, equal basic terms cover pay, working time, rest breaks and annual leave. Some breaks pause the clock rather than reset it.
Agency pay parity excludes occupational sick pay, pensions, family-leave pay, redundancy pay, share schemes, certain loyalty bonuses, expenses and most benefits in kind. Twelve weeks do not entitle you to the hirer’s whole package. Your agency may still owe statutory sick pay, pension contributions or family pay separately.
Can an employer withdraw a benefit already promised?
Check your contract, offer letter and any incorporated handbook. Clear, consistent custom and practice can create an entitlement, though regular payment alone does not settle it. Removing a contractual benefit needs agreement or another lawful basis for variation. An announcement is not enough.
Genuinely discretionary schemes give more room, but discretion must be lawful, rational and used for a proper purpose. “Manager’s discretion” cannot justify refusing grants only to women returning from maternity leave.
Under TUPE, contractual benefits generally transfer with you. Occupational pensions have a substantial exception and separate protections. “Harmonising” health cover or allowances does not justify cutting transferred rights. Even agreement may not validate a change prohibited by TUPE.
Benefits on leave and statutory minimums
From 1 April 2026, hourly minimum wages are £12.71 for ages 21 and over, £10.85 for ages 18 to 20, and £8.00 for under-18s. The £8.00 apprentice rate applies below age 19 or in the first apprenticeship year; other apprentices get their age rate. Most workers have 5.6 weeks’ paid holiday, subject to statutory calculation rules.
Maternity and other family leave
Contractual benefits other than remuneration generally continue during maternity, adoption and shared parental leave. Medical cover, life cover and a company car for private use should not disappear. Salary, cash allowances and pensions need separate analysis.
During paid family leave, employer pension contributions use the salary you would have received; yours use actual pay. Employer contributions also continue through the first 26 weeks of maternity leave, even unpaid. Contributions during later unpaid leave depend on contractual or scheme rights.
Example: benefits across maternity leave
You qualify for statutory maternity pay on steady annual earnings of £36,000 and start 52 weeks’ leave on 1 October 2026. Contractual medical cover, life cover and a private-use car continue throughout. The first six weeks pay £36,000 ÷ 52 × 90% = £623.08 a week. The 2026/27 rate for weeks 7 to 39 is £194.32 a week; any annual rate change must be applied. The final 13 weeks are unpaid unless your employer offers more.
From 5 April 2026, the standard statutory family-pay rate is £194.32 or 90% of average weekly earnings if lower. Maternity and adoption pay have a different first-six-weeks calculation. Day-one paternity leave does not mean day-one paternity pay.
Sick leave
Since 6 April 2026, SSP starts on the first qualifying sick day, with no earnings floor. It pays £123.25 a week or 80% of average weekly earnings if lower, for up to 28 weeks. You still need to meet eligibility conditions. Employment-law worker status alone is not enough.
Example: sick pay for a low earner
If you qualify and average £120 a week, SSP is £120 × 80% = £96 for a full qualifying week. Shorter absences use qualifying days. Before 6 April 2026, that level of earnings was below the eligibility floor.
Enhanced sick pay can differ by grade or service, subject to equality and contract checks. Other benefits during sickness depend on their terms. Removal may breach your contract or disability protections; family-leave continuation rules do not apply wholesale.
Workplace pensions
Eligible workers aged 22 to below state pension age, earning over £10,000, normally qualify for automatic enrolment. In a qualifying-earnings scheme, the usual minimum is 8% total, including at least 3% from the employer. The earnings band is £6,240 to £50,270 for 2026/27. Scheme rules can require more.
Example: minimum pension contributions
For steady earnings of £30,000, annual qualifying earnings are £30,000 minus £6,240 = £23,760. The annualised minimum is £23,760 × 8% = £1,900.80 total, including £23,760 × 3% = £712.80 from your employer.
Earning £10,000 or less does not necessarily mean no employer contribution. Eligible staff can opt in, with employer contributions required above the lower earnings threshold. At or below that threshold, you can join without a statutory employer contribution.
Tuition reimbursement: eligibility and tax
The UK work-related training exemption has no monetary cap. It can cover employer-arranged courses and reimbursements relevant to your current or likely future duties with that employer. A company budget limit is not a tax threshold.
Example: two £4,000 reimbursements
Your employer reimburses £4,000 for qualifying work-related training. Taxable benefit: £0. A £4,000 reimbursement for a wholly personal course outside the exemption counts as earnings, with PAYE and Class 1 National Insurance through payroll. Employer-arranged non-exempt training has different reporting rules.
Eligibility still needs scrutiny. Role-related qualifications can justify different funding. Full-time-only rules need justification under part-time law and may discriminate indirectly. Service requirements must satisfy the age rules. The policy should identify eligible courses, who decides and whether funding is contractual.
Read any fee-repayment clause before accepting funding. A written clawback is not automatically enforceable; its terms and the rules against penalties matter. Nor does it necessarily authorise a deduction from final wages. Get advice on disputed demands.
In Great Britain, employees and workers must get a day-one written statement covering pay and other benefits. It should describe your actual entitlement. See our guide to written terms.
Flexible benefits, assistance programmes and perks
Flexible plans offer choices such as extra holiday, pension contributions or health cash plans. Check who gets the allowance and whether disabled staff can use the options. Choice does not cure discriminatory eligibility. Group-discount schemes also need fair access.
Salary sacrifice must not reduce cash pay below minimum wage. Many benefits are taxed on the higher of salary given up and taxable benefit value. Exceptions include pensions, qualifying cycle-to-work schemes, certain low-emission cars and some childcare arrangements. Check each option’s treatment.
A total rewards statement helps compare packages, but does not automatically create entitlements. Employer National Insurance is an employer cost, not money available to you. Check the contract and scheme rules.
Employee assistance programmes
The welfare counselling exemption requires access for all employees. It covers stress, bereavement and similar welfare issues, not general tax, legal or leisure advice. Debt advice and some counselling treatments can qualify. An assistance programme is not automatically tax-free in every respect; salary sacrifice removes this exemption.
Small gifts, insurance and pets
A trivial benefit costing £50 or less can be tax-free if it is not cash, a cash voucher, contractual or a reward for work. A birthday gift may qualify; a performance reward does not. Close-company directors face a £300 annual cap. Tax exemption does not excuse discrimination.
Small firms buying health or life cover face the same basic equality and contract rules as larger employers. Check eligibility and exclusions as well as price.
Pet insurance discounts, dogs in the office and veterinary-appointment leave are optional unless promised contractually. There is no general statutory pet leave. Health, safety and disability duties still apply. An assistance dog is not simply a pet perk.
Gig, casual and zero-hours staff
A zero-hours arrangement can be employment or a worker relationship. Employees have statutory family-leave rights and family pay where eligible. On 1 October 2026, ordinary unfair-dismissal protection generally still requires two years’ service; some claims need none.
Non-employee workers generally have minimum wage, holiday, rest-break, part-time and discrimination protections, written terms and pensions if eligible, but not employee-only family leave or unfair-dismissal rights. SSP has separate employee eligibility rules that can cover some agency and other arrangements.
Genuinely self-employed people lack the same statutory benefits, though personal-service contractors may have discrimination protection. See our status guide. Supplier-diversity policies concern procurement, not employees’ entitlements.
Scotland and Northern Ireland
The main Great Britain rules also apply in Scotland. Its tribunal breach-of-contract deadline increases later, on 9 November 2026. Tribunal contract claims have jurisdictional conditions; their deadline is not the deadline for every contract dispute.
Northern Ireland has separate equality and employment laws. The Equality Act does not apply. Parallel laws include religious-belief and political-opinion protection, and part-time, fixed-term and agency rights. April 2026 SSP reforms extend there, but do not assume other Great Britain reform dates or deadlines do. See our Northern Ireland guide.
If you think a benefit decision is discriminatory
- Save the evidence. Keep the policy, written terms, refusal and criteria. Ask why you do not qualify. For equal pay, identify your opposite-sex comparator and equal work.
- Raise the problem. Request a correction or use the grievance procedure. A union representative can help. Grievances do not stop the tribunal clock.
- Notify Acas in time. Most Great Britain tribunal claims require early conciliation. Timely notification pauses the clock under statutory rules. Do not await the grievance outcome.
- Check your deadline. Most relevant claims with a qualifying date on or after 1 October 2026 have six months minus one day. Earlier claims may retain three months minus one day. Equal pay, Scotland’s tribunal contract claims and Northern Ireland need separate checks.
Example: the deadline before conciliation
A single discriminatory refusal on 15 October 2026 ordinarily has a deadline of 14 April 2027 before early conciliation. A refusal on 20 September 2026 ordinarily has a deadline of 19 December 2026. Notify Acas within time. Do not guess the extension or assume repeated refusals restart time.
Check Acas deadline guidance and the transitional rules. Seek prompt advice on continuing conduct, facts spanning 1 October, or overlapping discrimination, equal-pay and deduction claims.
Ask your union for help: Unite in care, hospitality or logistics; UNISON in health and care; USDAW in retail; GMB or IWGB in warehouses and delivery. Citizens Advice and local law centres can explain your options. For discrimination, contact the Equality and Human Rights Commission for guidance. Report minimum-wage underpayment, including deductions for required uniforms, to HMRC; that is wage theft, not a benefits dispute. Report labour exploitation in a GLAA-regulated sector to the GLAA. If the dispute also involves unsafe work, contact the Health and Safety Executive. These routes do not stop a tribunal deadline.
What is in force and what is scheduled?
We describe the law as at 1 October 2026. The Acas timetable distinguishes current rights from scheduled changes.
- In force: sick pay and leave
SSP waiting days and the earnings floor removed; day-one paternity and unpaid parental leave; six-year holiday-record duty. The Fair Work Agency began separately on 7 April.
- In force: tribunal limits
Most relevant claims move to six months minus one day, subject to transitional rules.
- Scheduled: harassment duties
All reasonable steps required to prevent sexual harassment; third-party harassment liability, subject to the preventive-steps defence.
- Scheduled: Scotland contract claims
Tribunal breach-of-contract limits increase to six months, subject to timing rules.
- Scheduled: unfair dismissal
Ordinary qualifying service falls to six months; compensatory cap removed. Stronger fire-and-rehire protection is scheduled for January. Check commencement and restricted-change scope.
Questions people ask
Can managers alone get health insurance?
Yes, if the distinction is lawful and honours contractual promises. Equal work, indirect discrimination, disability adjustments and part-time or fixed-term managers’ rights still matter.
Can part-timers get smaller benefits?
A divisible allowance can normally be proportionate to hours. Medical cover or essential training may not divide that way. Exclusion because of part-time status needs objective justification.
Can benefits require five years’ service?
Yes. The age exception depends on the disadvantaged employee’s service. Beyond five years, the employer needs a reasonable business-need belief. Contract and other equality protections remain.
Do agency workers get every benefit after 12 weeks?
No. Qualifying gives equal basic pay, working-time and holiday terms, not the entire package. Separate SSP, pension and family-pay rights may apply through the agency.
Is employer-paid tuition taxable?
Qualifying work-related training can be exempt without a cap. Non-exempt personal-course reimbursements go through payroll for PAYE and Class 1 National Insurance.
Do benefits continue on maternity leave?
Contractual non-pay benefits generally continue throughout. Pensions follow separate rules, including employer contributions during paid leave and the first 26 weeks even unpaid. Later unpaid contributions depend on contractual or scheme rights.
Sources
- Equality Act 2010, including sections 13, 19, 20, 39, 66, 69 and 77, legislation.gov.uk
- Length-of-service benefits exception, legislation.gov.uk
- Insurance and related financial services exception, legislation.gov.uk
- Part-time Workers Regulations, regulation 5, legislation.gov.uk
- Fixed-term Employees Regulations, legislation.gov.uk
- Agency Workers Regulations, legislation.gov.uk
- Transfer of Undertakings Regulations 2006, legislation.gov.uk
- Written employment particulars, legislation.gov.uk
- Maternity and Parental Leave Regulations 1999, legislation.gov.uk
- National Minimum Wage and Living Wage rates, GOV.UK
- Statutory Sick Pay rates and eligibility, GOV.UK
- Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027, GOV.UK
- Workplace pension contributions and leave and employer duties, GOV.UK
- Work-related training exemption, HMRC
- Non-exempt training payments, reporting and National Insurance, GOV.UK
- Salary sacrifice and PAYE, HMRC
- Trivial benefits and welfare counselling, GOV.UK
- Diversity and discrimination in Northern Ireland, nidirect
- Employment Rights Act 2025, legislation.gov.uk
- Employment Rights Act implementation timetable and tribunal time limits, Acas
- Employment Rights Act 2025 commencement and time-limit transitional provisions, SI 2026/954, legislation.gov.uk
- The experience of insecure work, TUC (30 September 2025)
- Tribunal statistics quarterly, October to December 2025, Ministry of Justice (12 March 2026)
