The gender pay gap is defined as the difference between men’s and women’s earnings as a percentage of men’s earnings. Looking at median hourly earnings (excluding overtime) there is a large difference in the gap for full-time employees compared to part-time employees.
Full-time
In April 2013 men’s median gross hourly earnings (excluding overtime) grew by 2.5% to £13.60, up from £13.27 in 2012. In comparison, women’s hourly earnings were £12.24, a 1.9% increase compared with £12.01 in 2012. The gender pay gap for full-time employees therefore increased to 10.0% from 9.5% in 2012.
Part-time
For part-time employees, men’s median gross hourly earnings (excluding overtime) were £7.95 in April 2013, up 3.0% from £7.72 in 2012. In comparison, women’s hourly earnings were £8.40, an increase of 3.2% from £8.14. The gender pay difference for part-time employees was therefore in the opposite direction to that of full-time employees, widening to -5.7% compared with -5.5% in 2012.
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In April 2013 the gender pay gap based on median hourly earnings for all employees (full-time and part-time) increased slightly to 19.7% from 19.6% in 2012.
- In April 2013 median gross weekly earnings for full-time employees were £517, up 2.2% from £506 in 2012.
- For men, full-time earnings were £556 per week, up 1.8%, compared with £459 for women, up 2.2%.
- The gender pay gap (i.e. the difference between men’s and women’s earnings as a percentage of men’s earnings) based on median gross hourly earnings (excluding overtime) for full-time employees increased to 10.0% from 9.5% in 2012.
- For the year ending 5 April 2013 median gross annual earnings for full-time employees (who had been in the same job for at least 12 months) were £27,000, an increase of 2.1% from the previous year.
- In April 2013 10% of full-time employees earned less than £7.28 per hour (excluding overtime), an increase of 1.5% compared with the previous year. At the other end of the distribution, 10% of full-time employees earned more than £27.02 per hour, which was also an increase of 1.5% compared with the previous year.
- In April 2013 median gross weekly earnings for full-time employees were highest in London, at £658, and lowest in Northern Ireland, at £460.
Commenting on the latest annual pay statistics published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which show that the full-time gender pay gap increased to 15.7 per cent in 2013 (up from 14.8 per cent the year before), TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said:
“This year has seen a shock rise in the gender pay gap after years of slow, steady progress. Ministers should be ashamed of presiding over this latest dismal record on pay.
“It is not right that in Britain today women still earn 15 per cent less per hour than men, a pay gap that costs full-time women over £5,000 a year.
“The UK’s five million women part-time workers are faring even worse on pay, with two in five now earning less than the living wage.
“The light touch, voluntary approach to tackling gender pay inequality is clearly failing. We need tougher action to force companies look at their pay gaps.
“The government can lead the way by making all new public sector vacancies available on a part-time or flexible basis, so that women don’t have to trade down jobs if they need to work fewer hours to balance their career with caring responsibilities.”
