Addressing the gender pay gap

With Equal Pay Day in November, gender pay gap awareness has brought to light that most women in the UK were essentially working for free from mid-November compared to their male counterparts.

The Gender Pay Gap is the difference between the average earnings of men and women for doing the same job. Although it is against the law for companies to discriminate against a person’s salary due to gender, part of the reason that pay parity has been slow to equalise is that when companies are conducting interviews, one of the most common questions employers ask is still ‘What is your current salary?’

As women have traditionally been paid lower than men, it means that any salary increase made is only comparative to their previous earnings rather than what the position is worth – regardless of gender, work experience or current salary.

According to the Office of National Statistics, as of April 2021, the pay gap was 7.9% for full-time employees, continuing the downward trend. When compared with lower-paid employees, higher earners experience a much larger difference in hourly pay between the sexes. 

So how can we help to address the balance? The easiest way to move forward and ensure that you are not following previous gender pay gap trends is to not address salary pay history when recruiting for a new position, but to offer a salary band for any vacancy based on what you believe the position to be worth financially to your organisation prior to starting the recruitment and selection process.

If you need any advice on current market values for positions, or guidance on salary bandings for positions we are here to help. Henley Executive is able to give you a realistic and up-to-date view on the current market trends and help with salary reviews. Get in touch with Max Levenger on today on 0333 568 488 to start your recruitment planning.