UK finance sector under fire over gender bonus gap
The UK’s financial sector has come under fire as a report from the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) reveals a huge gap in the value of bonuses paid to men and women.
According to an EHRC study of 44 leading companies, men working in the financial sector receive five times more in bonus payments than women.
For female workers, the average works out at £2,875 compared with £14,554 for male colleagues.
The commission’s chairman, Trevor Phillips, has described the findings as “shocking” and Equality Minister Harriet Harman has promised new measures to tackle the disparity.
However, solutions are unlikely to be simple as bonus payments are linked to earnings and the difficulties faced by women in rising through the ranks of financial institutions therefore come into play.
In a report published earlier this year, the EHRC revealed that women working in the UK financial services industry earned up to 60% less than men.
The research also indicated that 70% of men employed in financial services earned over £29,400 in 2007/8; for women the situation was reversed with 70% earning less than £29,500.
The commission is now keen for financial firms to undertake annual equal pay audits and would also like to see board members appointed to oversee issues of gender and pay.
Category: Employment News, Insurance News
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