The UK has the sixth-largest male-female pay gap in the EU
For every pound a man in Britain earns, on average a woman will still only receive 80 pence.
Reasons?
- ‘The motherhood penalty’ – women are more likely to work part-time due to childcare responsibilities
- Concentration in low wage sectors (occupational segregation)
- Outright discrimination
What businesses need to tackle in order to close pay gap?
- When men are recruited they’re typically more confident in negotiating larger starting salaries, Thos sets them off on a higher earnings path than their female counterparts. Recruitment has to be a more fair and transparent process, one that cuts out unconscious bias. It could mean using diverse selection panels and tapping into more diverse talent pools.
- Businesses must make the working environment and conditions more women-friendly. Flexible working arrangements, greater support for those caring for children or relatives, and mentoring by senior managers.
Some facts to consider about the Gender pay gap:
The difference between the lifetime earning of men and women in the UK finance centre is £970,000
The Equalities and Human Rights Commission estimates it will take 70 years at the current rate of progress to see an equal number of female and male directors of FTSE 100 companies
In relation to men, women work for free for 57 days a year – women earn 15% less than men do
Can you believe there are Only 5/95 female CEOs in the FTSE 100
If the skills and qualifications of women who are currently out of work in the UK were fully utilised, the UK could deliver economic between of £15-21 billion pounds per year
THE PAY GAP
How does this relate to business leadership?
Aside from the prospect of being paid more, progress and development in career paths can be made easier to achieve through legislative and organisational change.
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