Pay gap: will new legislation let off the worst offenders?

Green Politics

Research shows that the gap is often more pronounced in smaller companies

 

New government measures to tackle the gender pay gap will only apply to firms who employ more than 250 people. These companies will be required to publish the details of their employees’ salaries.

But according to a leading salary benchmarking website, the government could have got its prioirities wrong. Statistics from Emolument.com show that the pay gap may actually be more pronounced in smaller companies. Data submitted anonymously by over 61,000 people show that:

  • For retail managers, the gap for large companies stands at 11 per cent, while for companies with less than 250 employees it can be as much as 26 per cent.
  • At VP level in investment banking, men receive bonuses 50 per cent bigger than their female counterparts in smaller companies, but double the size in organisations with over 250 employees
  • In consultancy, there appears to be no gender gap for senior consultants in large organisations but there is a 20 per cent difference for companies with less than 250 employees
  • The same is true for Legal Associates, with an equal salary in large firms but a 15% difference in firms with less than 250 employees.

This is the first time that the government has made it an obligation for companies to disclose the salaries they pay. A previous scheme made it voluntary for firms to present the information but only five chose to do this: Tesco, Friends Life, PwC, AstraZeneca and Genesis.

It will be interesting to see whether a climate of greater transparency encourages smaller firms to come forward – or whether they will take advantage of being out of the spotlight.

Ruby Stockham is a staff writer at Left Foot Forward. Follow her on Twitter

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4 Responses to “Pay gap: will new legislation let off the worst offenders?”

  1. swat

    Some truth in that smaller companies aren’t chased up because people have sympathy with them and feel sorry for tnhem; that’s hy they get away with it.

  2. beentheredonethat

    This is because small business owners tend to be incredibly selfish and greedy.

  3. swat

    Its more because if they pay equal rates or the living wage their business will go bust, and that about 3 + more people on the dole.

  4. Lucisan

    10 Year Old leftfoot work . <……. Find Here

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