Many of you will be familiar with the term the Gender Pay Gap. This is the difference in the average earnings of men and women.
In order to reduce the size of the Gender Pay Gap the government has introduced the Equality Act 2010 (Gender Pay Gap Information) Regulations 2017 which require organisations with 250 or more workers to publish both their Gender Pay Gap and Gender Bonus statistics by 4 April 2018 (for private sector organisations).
We have already started to see figures being reported, with Shoosmiths paying their female members of staff a median rate of 13% less per hour than their male counterparts.
It appears that although progress is being made to close the Gender Pay Gap you should not expect total equality any time soon. The Fawcett Society is of the view that due to its current size, it will take around 100 years to close, “If the mean average pay gap for full time workers of 14.1% closes at the rate it has over the last five years, it won't reach 0% until 2117”.
With organisations such as the CPS paying women 25.3% less than men per hour it is clear to see why many doubt the current procedures in place and the timescale for achieving equality.
As April 2018 fast approaches it will be interesting to see the true extent of the Gender Pay Gap and the affect the duty to publish these figures is having on reducing it.
Don’t forget those of you with 250 employees or more need to start working on your figures. If you need any assistance please do not hesitate to contact a member of our team.
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