GENDER PAY GAP
Commission to undertake consultation into gender pay gap
The Equality and Human Rights Commission is to begin a programme of consultation with the private sector to develop a set of measures for reporting on the gender pay gap, following a request from the government.
Research shows that the gap is wider in the private sector than in the public sector - a full-time gap of 21.7% compared with 13.8% - and that far fewer private sector than public sector employers are undertaking pay audits - 23% compared with 43%.
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The Commission will be consulting with the CBI and other business bodies, the TUC and individual trades unions, women's groups and other stakeholders throughout Britain on the most appropriate ways for measuring and publishing pay differentials.
The government has made clear that progress in gender pay transparency will be measured over four years from the Equality Bill’s introduction and that the power to require mandatory reporting of the gender pay gap by companies of more than 250 employees will not be exercised before the end of that period, and then only if there is evidence of insufficient progress.
The proposal will affect all private sector organisations employing 250 or more employees. This amounts to some 6,000 organisations employing roughly 10 million employees. (Source: EHRC analysis of ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2008.)
Background
The gender pay gaps based on hourly earnings excluding overtime are:
Full-time gender pay gap = 17.1% (mean); 12.7% (median).
Part-time gender pay gap = 36.6% (mean) 39.9% (median).
The full-time gender pay gaps based on hourly earnings excluding overtime are:
Public sector, full-time gender pay gap = 13.8% (mean); 11.1% (median).
Private sector, full-time gender pay gap = 21.7% (mean); 20.0% (median).
The part-time gender pay gaps based on hourly earnings excluding overtime are:
Public sector, part-time gender pay gap = 31.1% (mean); 39.6% (median).
Private sector, part-time gender pay gap = 43.4% (mean); 44.5% (median).
Source: EHRC analysis of ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2008.
A final word
“Through this consultation with businesses and other stakeholders, we believe we can agree ways of reporting that companies feel are practical and not onerous. As well as showing the headline figures, it will be important to find ways of revealing the complex underlying causes of pay gaps. This will help businesses to take appropriate measures to find solutions that narrow the pay gap within their own organisation.” - Trevor Phillips, Chair of Equality and Human Rights Commission.
Want to know more
The Equality and Human Rights Commission is a statutory body established under the Equality Act 2006, which took over the responsibilities of the Commission for Racial Equality, the Disability Rights Commission and the Equal Opportunities Commission. The Commission is the “independent advocate for equality and human rights in Britain”. For more details visit www.equalityhumanrights.com.