Majority of firms fail to narrow pay gap despite new reporting laws

Analysis by the BBC has revealed that across 45 per cent of firms, the discrepancy in pay increased in favour of men, while at a further 7 per cent there was no change.

Overall, 78 per cent of companies had a pay gap in favour of men, 14 per cent favoured women and the rest reported no difference.

Firms had until midnight to file pay comparison data - by which time 10,428 had done so - or face legal action.

The total is roughly the same as last year, but it is unclear how many firms have failed to respond, since the government has no definitive list of companies required to file figures.

Overall, the median pay gap in favour of men lowered slightly from 9.7 per cent last year to 9.6 per cent this year.

The median pay gap is calculated by comparing the difference in pay between the middle-ranking woman and middle-ranking man in the same companies.

Other analysis undertaken by paygaps.com has also shown that 33 per cent of organisations have failed to provide a link to their gender pay gap reports on the government website in this reporting year.

Under the new rules, a link to a firm’s report is required to be submitted to the government website along with the statutory metrics.

The issue highlights that many organisations are not taking gender pay gap reporting seriously. It also suggests that more needs to be done to ensure that organisations meet the guidelines in full.

This could come through more meaningful action being taken against those who fail to comply. 

Innes Miller,chief commercial officer of paygaps.com, said: “Organisations that fail to include a link are sending a message that says that gender pay gap reporting is simply a compliance excercise and not something that is important to their future. It reflects poorly among current employees, prospective employees, customers and investors who are looking for a commitment and a clear understanding of how the organisation plans to achieve greater equality.”

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has said it would take enforcement action against all firms that missed the deadline.

It was unclear exactly how many companies had not reported at all, although it is thought about a quarter did so in the last 36 hours before the deadline.