CLOSING THE GENDER PAY GAP USING THE EVERYWOMAN MODEL

Transcription

1 CLOSING THE GENDER PAY GAP USING THE EVERYWOMAN MODEL At 18.1%, the UK s gender pay gap is at its lowest since records began in But there s still much work to be done to reach salary parity between men and women. everywoman s research shows that investing in the development of your female talent can go a long way towards closing that gap... Page 1

2 Unequal pay between men and women has been illegal for 45 years. Yet the latest government figures reveal that at today s rate of progress, pay parity for all employees is not expected until 2069 a century after the introduction of the Equal Pay Act. A new online tool 1 will allow employees to discover the gender pay gap for their specific profession, role or industry. The calculator coincides with new government regulations that will, from April 2018, require large employers to publish details of the gender pay and bonus gaps within their organisations. While there is no silver bullet to eliminating the pay gap, a 2016 everywoman white paper demonstrated that when women are given regular, quality learning and development, they are more likely to be promoted. Access to training means they are also more likely to stay with their current employers, 2 thereby substantially reducing the high turnover costs related to loss of female talent (a cost that has been estimated to amount to 64% of all turnover equating to an annual 780,000 for companies with employees). 3 In August 2016, the Chartered Management Institute found that men are 40% more likely to be promoted to senior management positions. 4 Previous research by everywoman found that 43% of women would ideally like to leave their current employer. 5 Meanwhile, a recent study found that women who make the most Page 2

3 40% MEN ARE 40% 43% MORE LIKELY THAN WOMEN TO BE PROMOTED IN MANAGEMENT ROLES. Chartered Management Institute (2016) 43% OF WOMEN WOMEN WOULD IDEALLY LIKE TO LEAVE THEIR CURRENT EMPLOYER, 24% TO JOIN ANOTHER COMPANY (IN MANY CASES A COMPETITOR) 42% WHO HAVE REGULAR ACCESS TO L&D ARE 42% MORE LIKELY TO BE PROMOTED. everywoman (2016) everywoman & Alexander Mann Solutions (2012) use of their employers corporate membership to the everywomannetwork L&D platform, are more likely to step up the career ladder. When they regularly access learning materials such as those essential to successful pay increase requests (confidence, handling tough conversations, and negotiation to name a few), they are 42% more likely to be promoted. 6 If we are to help women to reach their potential and eliminate the gender pay gap, says Minister for Women and Equalities, Justine Greening, we need to shine a light on our workplaces to see where there is more to do to. Employers must play their part [and] take action to tackle the gender pay gap in their organisation. The online calculator launched by the government in partnership with the Office For National Statistics, shows that at 36.5%, financial managers and directors have one of the highest gender pay gaps. They are eclipsed only by construction and building trades supervisors, whose gender pay gap in favour of men stands at 45.4%. 7 A growing body of research finds that empowering women in the workplace is not simply the right thing to do it s the smart thing for every business. Gender-balanced teams Page 3

4 We need to shine a light on our workplaces to see where there is more to do Justine Greening MP, Minister for Women and Equalities produce better outcomes and create greater prosperity. The benefits of helping women to unlock their talents are huge, reports McKinsey 8 eliminating work-related gender gaps could add 150 billion to our annual GDP in Laura Hinton, executive board member and head of people at PwC, said: Publishing pay data alone won t change anything - progress will only happen if organisations use this as an opportunity to understand what s happening in their business and make some fundamental changes as a result. Bold action is needed to create true equality in the workplace. Virgin Media is one such organisation taking action to help close the gender pay gap, while bolstering the inclusion and engagement rates of their female talent. When we became a corporate partner with everywoman and decided to pilot the effectiveness of the everywomannetwork, our foremost aim was to increase engagement levels among our female middle managers who were less engaged than their male counterparts, says Sharon Murray, Head of Culture and Inclusion. Our investment in this group of 400 women in the past 12 months has started to show some real results not least in our most recent company engagement survey, where the levels of engagement of our everywoman cohort has increased from 61% to 67% - now higher than their male counterparts. Giving them Page 4

5 The levels of engagement of our everywoman cohort has increased from 61% to 67%. Giving them this opportunity to access role models and a variety of learning and development material is working. Sharon Murray, Head of Culture and Inclusion, Virgin Media this opportunity to access role models and a variety of learning and development material is working. Virgin Media s findings are replicated across the corporate membership base of the everywomannetwork. More than eight out of ten (81%) women gifted membership by their employers say that access to learning and development has enabled them to develop their careers. More than half (55%) are more focused on continued growth as a result. To find out more about how the everywomannetwork can help your organisation play its part in achieving gender parity and closing the pay gap visit retaining-and-advancingwomen-in-business. SOURCES 1 Office for National Statistics. (2016). Find out the gender pay gap for your job. Available at: 2 everywoman. (2016). Retaining and Advancing 3 everywoman. (2016). Retaining and Advancing 4 Chartered Management Institute. (2016). Men 40% more likely than women to be promoted in management roles. Available at: managers.org.uk/about-us/media-centre/cmipress-releases/men-forty-percent-more-likelythan-women-to-be-promoted-in-managementroles 5 Alexander Mann Solutions & everywoman. (2012). Focus On The Pipeline: Engaging the full potential of female middle managers. focus-on-the-pipeline 6 everywoman. (2016). Retaining and Advancing 7 Office for National Statistics. (2016). Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings: 2016 provisional results. Available at: employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/ earningsandworkinghours/bulletins/annualsurv eyofhoursandearnings/2016provisionalresults 8 McKinsey & Company. (2016). The power of parity: Advancing women s equality in the United Kingdom. Available at: mckinsey.com/global-themes/women-matter/ the-power-of-parity-advancing-womensequality-in-the-united-kingdom Page 5