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EOC survey shows women are heading for disappointment over their pay

Women still being paid less

Women may be destined for major disappointment over their salaries, according to new research carried out by BMRB Access Omnibus Surveys for the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC). 88% of women surveyed, rising to 94% of those aged 24 and under, expect to earn the same as a man with the same qualifications. Recent data shows the difference in average pay between men and women working full time is £559 per month.

These findings coincide with the launch of new EOC fair pay campaign, It's time to get even, which helps women check they are being paid fairly. It's against the law to pay women less than a man for the same or similar work. While the difference between the average male and female salary has a number of causes, not all of which employers can tackle alone, many women are still being paid unfairly.

However, it's hard for women to detect if they are being paid unfairly, if they can't compare their pay with men. The BMRB research shows that:

Women (29% of those questioned) are more likely not to know what their colleagues earn than men (20%);
More people in socio-economic groups A and B felt that they knew what most of their colleagues earn compared to people in groups C, D and E (36% of people in social group AB knew about their colleagues' earnings compared to 18% of people in social group E).

The top 3 areas with the highest gender pay gap in Britain are the City of London with a £412.87 pay gap per week, the City of Westminster with a £284.39 pay gap and Islington with a £262.00 pay gap. The 3 areas with the smallest gap are Durham with a gap of £50.56, Sefton with a gap of £49.94 and Wirral with a weekly pay gap of £46.14.

Julie Mellor, Chair of the EOC, said: "Forget about sex, politics and religion, pay is the new taboo. In Britain today, the whole business of pay is shrouded in mystery. And this survey also shows that if you are a woman on a lower wage you are even more likely to be in the dark on how much you should expect. "Discrimination flourishes in this culture of secrecy when people cannot be sure they are rewarded fairly."

The EOC has designed a salary calculator specially adapted from PayFinder.com which allows you to check your salary against average salaries for your kind of job. See how your salary compares.

The research also revealed that more than two thirds of men and women overall (81% of women and 51% of men) would be influenced by whether an organisation could prove that they paid women fairly when choosing an employer.

Julie Mellor said: "Employers who want to recruit and retain the best people need to demonstrate there is no discrimination in their workplace. It is also in everyone's interest to avoid a claim of pay discrimination going to a tribunal."

The new EOC Code of Practice on Equal Pay (launched in December 2003) recommends equal pay reviews as the best means for employers to ensure that their pay system delivers equal pay. The code and the EOC's Equal Pay Kits for large and smaller employers are all available from www.eoc.org.uk. You can also order free posters and beermats/coasters can be ordered from the EOC.

Viv Andrews from PayFinder said, "We are delighted to be able to assist the EOC with this campaign. PayFinder is committed to promoting increased transparency and equality in the workplace and we hope that the salary calculator will help lots of women to discover what they are truly worth."

How the figures ad up

Tthe difference between average full-time pay for men and women, reflected in a monthly payslip is:

Annual salary (gross)

Men working full-time: £27, 300
Women working full-time: £20,592
Difference per year: £6,708
Difference per month based on average weekly earnings: £559

Weekly pay (gross)

The pay gap between men and women's weekly pay

Men: £525
Women: £396
Weekly difference: £129
Difference in weekly take home pay: £86.43

Hourly pay

Men working full-time: £12.88
Women working full-time: £10.56
Women working part-time: £7.78

All figures taken from New Earnings Survey, October 2003

The gap in the average hourly full-time rate between men and women is 18%. If you also take bonus levels and overtime payments into account, the gap in the average weekly full-time rate is 25%, equivalent to £559 a month.

Causes of the pay gap

The EOC's Equal Pay Taskforce identified the causes of the pay gap between men and women in the report Just Pay (2001). These include:

Occupational segregation, where large groups of women are concentrated in a narrow range of low paid occupations; e.g. cleaning, catering and caring;
The impact of caring responsibilities on women in the labour market, including the ability of women to work full-time or over-time;
Pay discrimination. This is when employers' pay systems reward women employees unfairly. All three causes are closely linked. For example, employers who carry out pay reviews may find that particular pay problems will be caused by occupational segregation. This can happen when a company which employs large numbers of women and men in different areas which require the same level of skills and are deemed of 'equal worth' pays one group more. Doing a pay review can help tackle all three causes of the gap.The EOC is committed to working with other organisations to help tackle all the causes of the gender pay gap.

How the PayFinder Calculator works

The PayFinder calculator, which is based on the pay of more than 100,000 people who have registered their details with PayFinder.com, allows people to compare their salary with others doing a similar job in the same region and compares male and female average pay for that job. The information collated by PayFinder is provided by individuals who warrant the accuracy of the information they provide. Statistics relating to gender pay gaps across a number of sectors/industries based on official figures can be found in the EOC's Pay and Income briefing which is available from www.eoc.org.uk. For the latest statistics on the gender pay gap go to the Office for National Statistics website www.statistics.gov.uk.

Use the equal pay calculator to see how your salary compares with a man doing a similar job

What to do if you think you are being discriminated against

The information on PayFinder can only give individuals information on whether there is a difference between men or women's average pay for a specific job. If there is a difference between a person's pay and the average pay for their job title there could be a number of possible reasons, one of which could be pay discrimination. The EOC will provide further advice and information to those who have concerns, including on how they might take these forward - have a look at its website of contact the helpline.

Helpline: 08456 9015901 www.eoc.org.uk

If you are an employer and are worried about not paying fairly then the best thing to do is have a pay audit. They can show up inequalities which can be resolved to ensure equality of pay. This will boost workers' morale and avoid employers' involvement in lengthy, unnecessary and expensive litigation.

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