Ethnicity Pay Gap Day

Now in its 4th year Ethnicity Pay Gap Day was initially launched by Dianne Greyson, Founder of the #EthnicityPayGap Campaign on January 8th 2021 with the aim of raising awareness of disparities in pay between white employees and their colleagues from ethnic backgrounds. It is also a day to encourage organisations to gain a deeper understanding of the composition of their workforce by using data-led initiatives in order to be able to calculate and submit their ethnicity pay gap figures.

Ethnicity pay gaps occur due to the lack of senior leaders from diverse backgrounds within a company. This shortage affects the average and median salary figures, as fewer leaders from diverse backgrounds earn higher salaries. Setting and achieving leadership targets which are better representative of both employees and clients will go some way to decreasing the gap, and organisations are beginning to take action despite there being no mandatory obligation.  

New statistics released in late 2023 by the ONS show that the ethnicity pay gap in the UK remains stubbornly fixed and is not only between white employees versus Black or Asian workers, but also between different ethnic groups. Research by PwC shows an increase in UK organisations voluntarily submitting their ethnicity pay gap figures from 5% in 2018 to 23% in 2020, however some believe the reporting needs to go further.

The interim co-CEO of the Runnymede Trust (an independent think tank which researches racial inequality in Britain), Dr Shabna Begum, said, “Mandatory, intersectional pay gap reporting is a vital first step in measuring and understanding the scale of pay disparities”.

This is an ideal closely mirrored by the Parker Review, the independent body which encourages greater diversity of UK Boards. As of December 2023, they are looking to extend their remit to include the UK’s 50 biggest private companies in providing ethnicity data with a view to:

“Having at least one ethnic minority director on the main board by December 2027. Each company will also be asked to set a target for the percentage of ethnic minority executives within its senior management team.” (Parker Review)

In its fourth year, Ethnicity Pay Gap Day highlights persistent pay disparities between white employees and their peers from ethnic backgrounds, prompting awareness and voluntary initiatives. Despite recent efforts, the UK's ethnicity pay gap remains stark, emphasising the requirement for mandatory reporting and initiatives.

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