Female Managers work for free: Equal Pay Day highlights “inexcusable” Gender Pay Gap
Chartered Management Institute
On Equal Pay Day exclusive CMI and XpertHR analysis has revealed that female managers across the UK are working for free for over 3 months a year.
For female managers, who face an average gender pay gap of 26.8%, Equal Pay Day actually fell over a month earlier than for most working women on the 25th September 2018.
The large gender pay gap that female managers still face is being driven by the gross under representation of women at the top levels of management which has shown no signs of improvement: 75% of Directors are male and just 25% female, with men earning nearly £35k more on average than their female counterparts. At the bottom in entry level management roles women represent 66% of the workforce compared to 34% of men.
CMI identifies this effect as the “glass pyramid” – too many women at the bottom of organisations and too few at the top – and believes business must fix the “broken windows” of gender bias that impede women’s careers and mar their day-to-day experiences in the workplace.
CMI’s Chief Executive Ann Francke has dubbed the situation “inexcusable.” She added: “Although in recent years we have seen some improvements in the Gender Pay Gap, we need to dramatically up the pace. There are huge benefits to ensuring companies promote workplace equality – with McKinsey estimating that it could add £150bn to the UK economy by 2025. If we don’t act now, we we risk further damage to the economy, and given the uncertainties of Brexit we need this now more than ever.”.
Francke added: “Male managers are 40% more likely to be promoted than women – so the gender pay gap among managers still stands at a staggering 26.8%. CMI strongly believes that in addition to reporting transparency, businesses must follow through with action plans to support female talent in the management pipeline. Mentoring and sponsorship is key to tackling this persistent gender pay gap head-on.”
Francke added: “Even in top FTSE 250 companies in the UK only 8% of companies reported on progress against their board’s gender diversity objective. All organisations need to vastly improve gender equality in the workplace, especially among managers. CMI’s Blueprint for Balance and its CMI Women network offers a wealth of advice to businesses to help them boost equality, and support the rise of female leaders.”
