It’s a subject that often provokes much discussion – the gender pay gap and whether men still earn more money than women?
In 1970, the Equal Pay Act made it illegal to pay people of different sexes, different wages, however, many companies still pay men and women different wages based on their gender.
In the UK, women predominately still earn less than men but companies are coming under increasing pressure to narrow gender pay gaps with immediate effect.
In fact, recent figures released from the Confederation of British Industry’s employment trends survey revealed that 93% of businesses are taking action to close the gender pay gap, compared to 62% of companies that were asked a similar question in 2017.
After all, in a world that actively promotes the importance of gender equality, it’s vital that businesses do not discredit skills, knowledge and experience, based on gender.
In addition to this, companies operating within the UK with 250 or more employees must now also publish their gender pay gap data, forcing them to tackle the issue or risk their public reputation.
What is the gender pay gap?
In the UK, men still earn more money women and the gender pay gap takes into account the percentage difference between average hourly earnings for both men and women.
However, the gender pay gap is not the same as equal pay as, when looking at gender pay gap, other responsibilities are taken into account such as motherhood and other gender stereotypes.
Gender discrimination is another factor that plays a role in the gender pay gap, as research conducted by The Equality and Human Rights Commission (ECHR) found that one in nine new mums were made redundant, dismissed or treated unfairly to an extend that they felt pushed out of their role.
It is hoped that, now companies are forced to publish their gender pay gap data under a legal legalisation, the gender pay gap will start to close further, and faster.
As part of the legalisation, which came into play in April 2018, businesses across all sectors must disclose their average pay for both men and woman, and if there are significant differences, companies must give a detailed plan about how they will tackle this on-going issue.
