Gender Pay Gap back in the news
The law requires companies, charities and public sector departments of 250 employees or more to publish their gender pay gap figures. The first set were based on a snapshot taken in April 2017, and the most recent data relates to April 2018.
The gender pay gap looks at the company's median pay gap. This is the difference in pay between a middle-ranking female and a middle-ranking male.
According to a recent story by the BBC, big firms are still not playing ball when it comes to pay gaps. Kwik Fit, Npower and Virgin Atlantic are just three of the larger firms named in the article that have some of the widest reported gender pay gaps.
Of the companies that had reported by the morning of 19 February 2019 – almost one year on:
- 74% report a pay gap which favours men;
- 14% have a pay gap favouring women;
- 12% report no pay gap.
Only around 10% of employers have reported their latest figures so far.
It is fair to say that there is no quick fix and it will take time for employers to implement plans to close the gap. Where the gap is apparent is where women take a career break to take on a child care role, however, the Human Rights Commission indicates that there is a wider issue around an assumption that mothers are less interested in their careers after having children
If you think you are being paid less than a fellow employee, or you are an employer seeking further advice relating to your work force or gender pay gap, contact the Employment team at Downs Solicitors to see how we can help.
