COUNCIL bosses have denied that they have been sticking their heads in the sand over equal pay.

Equal Pay campaigner Mark Irvine claims that North Ayrshire Council have been using delay tactics in order to stall the process.

On his website he said that NAC have been given one last chance to provide information to an employment tribunal after failing to meet previous orders to hand over details which would back up their defence.

The Action4Equality spokesman said that a date for a final hearing into the matter was due to have been decided at a Case Management Discussion at the end of last month.

North Ayrshire Council had argued at a meeting in January that some of women claiming against them did not actually earn less than their male counterparts.

However, Mr Irvine claims that they failed to back up their claim with evidence at that meeting, and tribunal agreed to give them time to provide the information, including an explanation of the details of the claim as well as providing detailed rates of pay for all of the claimants and comparator posts.

Mr Irvine alleges that at the meeting in March the council again failed to provide evidence that their claims were true, failing also to clarify their defence as to the reasons to why some claimants did in fact earn less, and to provide the pay grades of the claimants and comparator posts.

At this meeting it is understood that NAC were given one last opportunity to meet the Tribunal orders.

However, NAC Assistant Chief Executive (Personnel) Murray Macfarlane, told the Times: 'There is no truth in this whatsoever. The council is obliged to reply to all court instructions to provide information and does so.' A spokesperson for the Employment Tribunal Service confirmed that North Ayrshire Council had now provided information requested at the last CMD and still had time to complete their admissions on the other two points.