Policy News Journal - 2017-18

New figures published this week by the ONS show the UK’s overall gender pay gap rising marginally to 18.4%, but the gap for full-time workers falling to a record low – from 9.4% in 2016 to 9.1% in 2017.

To close the gender pay gap further, the Prime Minister is calling on companies to:  improve the pipeline to ensure progress on female representation at senior levels, including supporting women to progress to middle management and offering return to work schemes  publish their gender pay gap data, including companies with fewer than 250 employees  make flexible working a reality for all employees by advertising all jobs as flexible from Day 1, unless there are solid business reasons not to As part of the commitment to drive forward workplace equality, the Women’s Business Council which the Prime Minister established as Home Secretary in 2012, will be advising her on progress and good practice in business. The council will also be providing recommendations in key areas including middle management, flexible working, working parents and return-to-work schemes.

The Prime Minister is now calling on more employers to follow their lead, including encouraging businesses with fewer than 250 employees to voluntarily publish their pay gap too.

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London now has largest gender pay gap 28 November 2017

The pay gap between men and women working in London has barely changed in over two decades while other regions in the UK have seen more movement towards lowering their gender pay gap.

New analysis from the ONS (Office for National Statistics) shows that in 1997 London had the narrowest gender pay gap, but there has been little improvement since then. Women working full-time in London earned 15.1% less per hour, on average, than their male counterparts 20 years ago. This has only narrowed slightly in 2017, to 14.6% in favour of men. Other regions Northern Ireland is the only region in the UK where the pay gap has been in favour of women; women earn 3.4% more per hour, on average, than their male counterparts, and this has been the case since 2010.

The gap in Wales and Scotland has narrowed over the last two decades, and now women earn 6.3% and 6.6% per hour less than men, respectively. In 1997, women earned 17.5% less than men in Wales, and 18.4% less in Scotland.

Among part-time workers, the picture is a little different regionally. The gender pay gap has reversed in some places, with women now earning more, on average, than men across all regions. The pay differences are largest in Northern Ireland, London and Wales.

The gap in the North East was particularly large in 1997 with part-time women earning 7.2% less per hour, on average than men, and now women earn 3.6% more than men.

The region with the smallest gender pay gap is the South East, where women earn just 3.1% more per hour, on average, than men. This gap has actually reduced from women earning 9.0% more than men in 1997, suggesting that men’s wages have grown quicker than women’s in this area.

Full data reports are available to download from the ONS .

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Managing the gender pay gap 8 December 2017

Acas and the Government Equalities Office (GEO) have produced new guidance on managing the gender pay gap.

The Chartered Institute of Payroll Professionals

Policy News Journal

cipp.org.uk

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