UK Gender Pay Gap: Women in the Workplace Are Paid an Average of 14.3% Less than Men

By PR Newswire On Sep 17, 2024

Techopedia conducted a comprehensive investigation into gender pay gap data to shed light on which regions, industries, job roles, and other factors show the most pronounced discrepancies in earnings between men and women.

Some of the highlights of Techopedia’s deep dive include:

Women in the South East earn 12.9% less than men
In medicine and dentistry, men earn £63,600, while women make £43,200
White Irish women earn £18.03 per hour, 14.5% more than white men
The finance and insurance industries have the highest pay gap, at 22.7%
Women in their sixties are paid 13.3% less than men
Women even earn less than men depending on their location

The gender pay gap in the U.K. remains significant, with women earning approximately 85.7 pence for every pound earned by men, a disparity of 14.3% in hourly wages. According to data from 79% of employers mandated to report their gender pay gaps annually, men consistently earn higher median hourly wages. Only 13% of these employers indicate that women earn more than men, while just 8% report parity between the genders. The earnings discrepancy is also consistent in bonuses, where 65% of employers report men having higher median bonus pay, 18% report that women do, and 17% report the same for both genders.

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Location is also a big factor affecting discrepancies in pay, as each region typically represent different economies and labor market opportunities. The top two most populated regions in the U.K., South East and London, reported having a pay gap of 12.9% and 11.9%, respectively, in favor of men. This is followed by the East Midlands, where women make 11.9% less than men. The region with the lowest pay inequality is the North East, the least populated region, which reports a 7% pay gap.

How job roles and sectors shape the gender pay gap

A woman’s pay relative to a man is influenced by both her industry and local job market conditions. In full-time roles, finance and insurance exhibit the highest pay gap at 22.7%, while education has the largest gap among part-time positions, with women earning 24.6% less than men – just three-quarters of what their male counterparts make.

Industry-based gender pay gaps can help explain regional pay imbalances. For example, the South East U.K. region, which has the highest gender pay gap among regions, is heavily focused on science-related industries. In the professional, scientific, and technical fields, women earn 14.3% less than men.

While gender pay gaps are prevalent in the private sector, they also exist in the public sector. Female full-time employees in the public sector earn 9.6% less than their male counterparts, a gap that is 3.2% smaller than in the private sector. The only scenario where women earn more than men is in part-time roles, where they make 1.1% more. However, in part-time public sector positions, women still face significant inequality, with a 13.3% pay gap.

Ethnicity, education, and age: Three big factors influencing higher pay for men than women

Gender pay inequality also varies by ethnicity, education, and age, with women generally earning less than men. The largest disparity is between Bangladeshi women and their white male counterparts, with Bangladeshi women earning 66.9 pence for every pound earned by white men, a gap of 33.1%. Pakistani women earn 29.8% less than white men, while white women from England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, or Britain earn a median hourly pay of £13.09, which is 17.4% less than white men. In contrast, white Irish women earn £18.03 per hour, 14.5% more than their white male counterparts.

Educational qualifications and field of study also impact the pay gap. Medicine and dentistry show the highest gender pay gap, with men earning an average of £63,600 compared to £43,200 for women. Communications and media have the smallest gap, with men earning £28,700 and women £25,400. Notably, a HESA (Higher Education Statistics Authority) survey reveals that 15 months after graduation, female graduates earn a median salary £2,000 less than their male peers with the same qualifications.

Finally, age significantly impacts the gender pay gap, with women generally earning less than men as they grow older. While women earn roughly the same as men in their late teens and early twenties, for both full-time and part-time workers, the gap widens as they enter their thirties. By age 40, female workers on average face a 17% pay gap, which increases to 18.1% by their sixties.

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