Reports: Gender pay gap in the UK: 2020
It found that the gender pay gap in the UK has been declining slowly; over the last decade it has fallen by approximately a quarter among full-time employees and by just over one-fifth among all employees. In 2020, the gap among full-time employees fell to 7.4%, from 9.0% in 2019. Among all employees it fell to 15.5%, from 17.4% in 2019.
The gender pay gap is higher for all employees than for each of full-time employees and part-time employees. This is because women fill more part-time jobs, which in comparison with full-time jobs have lower hourly median pay.
Key findings:
- Covid-19 factors did not have a notable impact on the gender pay gap in 2020.
- Among full-time employees the gender pay gap in April 2020 was 7.4%, down from 9.0% in April 2019.
- The gender pay gap among all employees was 15.5% in 2020, down from 17.4% in 2019.
- The gender pay gap remained close to zero for full-time employees aged under 40 years but was over 10% for older age groups.
- Compared with lower-paid employees, higher earners experienced a much larger difference in hourly pay between the sexes.
- There was a fall in the gender pay gap within the managers, directors and senior officials occupation group in 2020; this group has previously been identified as having a notable impact on the pay gap.
The gender pay gap is calculated as the difference between average hourly earnings (excluding overtime) of men and women as a proportion of men’s average hourly earnings (excluding overtime).
