Pay gaps are a way of establishing how the average earnings of workers differ according to characteristics such as gender, ethnicity, disability or patterns of working. By analysing pay gaps it is possible to identify that certain groups of people earn only a proportion of what other people earn. The pay gap that most people know about is the national gender pay gap – the gap between men’s average pay and women’s average pay. Analysing information at a national level for men and women gives a broad overview of who are the higher and lower earners.
The national overview is most helpful to national and regional policy makers.
The traditional focus at a national level has been on gender, but ethnic minority and disabled employees and part-time workers also have a right to equality in their terms and conditions of employment, so it’s important to consider them too.
The second way of analysing pay gaps is through an equal ay audit of an organisation’s pay system. A crucial difference between pay gaps at a national level and an organisational pay audit is that the national figures tend to compare pay for all men and women, regardless of what jobs they do. An equal pay audit within one organisation compares the pay of employees doing ‘equal work’. It also provides a much more detailed picture to identify and put right any unlawful pay discrimination that might relate to gender, ethnicity, disability or working patterns.
A workplace equal pay audit is most helpful to employers, unions, shareholders, and of course, to employees.
Please send any feedback or enquiries to equalpayfeedback@equalityhumanrights.com.