The Office of National Statistics today released new figures indicating that the full-time gender pay gap in Scotland has decreased slightly from 14.9% to 13.5 % but remains shockingly high. The part-time figure is 32.1%. This part-time gender pay gap compares hourly earnings (excluding overtime) of women working part-time with those of men working full-time.
Based on today's figures, the Equality and Human Rights Commission Scotland estimates that across the UK an average woman in full-time work between ages 18-59 will miss out on £369,000 over the course of her working life.
That translates into:
• 31 years of childcare
• 22 new cars
• 511 holidays
• 10,218 nights out -- including dinner and drinks with friends
Morag Alexander, EHRC Scotland Commissioner, said:
'In these tough economic times, everyone is well aware of the bottom line. Today's figures show women in particular are feeling the pinch. The average woman in full-time work across the UK will lose out on £369,000 over the course of her working life.
Women aren't the only ones paying the price. The pay gap highlights a wider failure -- Scotland's failure to work better. Women who want or need flexibility often find they have to trade down. Many of the country’s well-paid, high-status jobs are stuck in an inflexible 1950s mould designed for an era when men were breadwinners and women homemakers. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Until we embrace modern ways of working employers will continue to miss out on the considerable talents of an increasingly well-educated generation of women who now make up almost half the workforce.
The fact that the part time pay gap remains a shocking 32.1% shows that we also have to maintain a focus on valuing the kind of jobs that women do. Too many of our crucial caring roles, largely undertaken by part time female employees, continue to be poorly valued and poorly paid.
We are calling on all employers to undertake equal pay reviews. Employers who actively seek to identify gaps not only put themselves in a far better position to take effective action, they win over the confidence and loyalty of staff who can be confident they are being treated fairly. We would urge women who feel they may be receiving unequal pay to contact our helpline on 0845 604 5510 for advice and information on how to tackle this issue.'
Ends
For more information contact the Scotland Press Office on 0141 228 5979/5950 or on 07970541369.
Notes to editors
In July 2008, the Equality and Human Rights Commission launched an investigation looking at how Britain can 'Work Better'. Working Better aims to identify and promote innovative new ways of working which help meet the challenges of the 21st century.
Whether you are someone with caring responsibilities, a mother or a father who wants to be a more active parent, a disabled person who wants a fulfilling career, a younger worker who wants phased entry into work, or an older worker who wants to stay in the labour market longer – this is the big issue of our time.
As part of the Commission's consultation, we are speaking to people at big and small businesses to find out how they balance work and personal lives. We are talked to both employers and their staff about their personal experiences. A final report is expected in Spring 2009.
On the same day that the ONS published the pay figures, the Commission for Equality and Human Rights has published a new survey looking at the number of public and private sector employers who are conducting voluntary pay reviews to help them ensure they are paying people fairly.
The survey of 866 public and private sector businesses across the UK conducted for the Commission by IFF Research found that:
- The proportion of employers who completed equal pay reviews rose from 5 percentage points from 2005 to 17% in 2008.
- Those with equal pay reviews in progress rose by 2 percentage points between 2005 and 2008 to 5 %, and the number of employers who said they planned to conduct a review rose by 8 percentage points to 17%.
- Equal pay reviews are more common in the public sector, where 43% of employers have completed one, have one in progress or are planning one, compared to 23% of private sector organizations.
- Larger organisations (those with 500 or more employees) are more than twice as likely as smaller employers (those with 25-99 employees) to have completed a review.
- The vast majority of employers surveyed who are doing or planning a review (87%) said equal pay reviews made good business sense.
The survey , Equal pay reviews surveys 2008, was conducted by L. Adams, P. Hall and S. Schäfer at IFF research. For a full copy of the report, visit the publications page.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission is a statutory body established under the Equality Act 2006, which took over the responsibilities of Commission for Racial Equality, Disability Rights Commission and Equal Opportunities Commission.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission is the independent advocate for equality and human rights in Britain. It aims to reduce inequality, eliminate discrimination, strengthen good relations between people, and promote and protect human rights.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission enforces equality legislation on age, disability, gender, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation or transgender status, and encourage compliance with the Human Rights Act. It also gives advice and guidance to businesses, the voluntary and public sectors, and to individuals.
14 November 2008