New research explores attitudes towards pay one year on from the Gender Pay Gap reporting legislation was implemented
New research from the UK’s leading independent job board, CV-Library, reveals that a staggering 84.6 per cent of women still feel affected by the gender pay gap, despite legislation coming into effect 12 months ago to tackle the issue.
The study of 1,200 UK workers found that nearly four in 10 (37 per cent) workers don’t think anything has changed since the legislation came in, rising to 40.7 per cent amongst women. In addition, one third (34.4 per cent) of women think their male colleagues are paid more than them, compared to 64.7 per cent of men who believe that women are paid the same.
The biggest divide was seen in the IT industry, where 83.3 per cent of women believe they’re paid less than men in similar roles. Alongside this, 71.4 per cent of women in recruitment, 66.7 per cent of women in property and 57.1 per cent of women in finance also feel that their male co-workers earn more than them, despite being in a similar role.
Lee Biggins, founder and managing director of CV-Library comments on the findings:
“There was certainly never going to be huge changes over night, however, it’s worrying that Brits feel no progress has been made following the legislation being put in place last year. Employers must ensure they’re offering fair salaries to all staff, which are reflective of the requirements of their role.”
When asked what they think could be done to tackle the issue, 52.8 per cent said there should be set salaries for each industry/role, a 6.8 per cent rise on the same findings from April 2017. Alongside this, 20.8 per cent say there needs to be more support for working parents, while one in 10 (11.9 per cent) say women need to feel more confident about asking for more money.
Biggins continues:
“The Government’s implementation of the legislation last year was a small step in the right direction, however it has been criticised for not being effective enough. Many companies involved are concerned about what the results will show, with claims made back in December that only 4 per cent had published their results.”
The study did find that 83.6 per cent of Brits think that continued awareness around the issue will eventually help to bridge the gap, with workers in London (89.7 per cent), Wales (89.3 per cent) and the North West (86.3 per cent) being most likely to agree with this.
Biggins concludes:
“Salaries are a key consideration for people when they’re looking for work. Combined with employee benefits, they’re often the deciding factor in whether someone accepts a job offeror not, particularly for those that seek an effective work-life balance. Rather than plucking a number out of thin air, or getting caught up in a negotiation battle, try to benchmark your salaries against industry averages and existing employee packages to ensure your offering is fair.”
Rebecca joined the HRreview editorial team in January 2016. After graduating from the University of Sheffield Hallam in 2013 with a BA in English Literature, Rebecca has spent five years working in print and online journalism in Manchester and London. In the past she has been part of the editorial teams at Sleeper and Dezeen and has founded her own arts collective.
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