BBC red-faced after journalist quits over gender pay gap

ONE of the BBC’s most senior journalists has resigned from her post in protest at the gender pay gap, accusing the corporation of a secretive and illegal culture of unequal salaries.

Carrie Gracie, who joined the BBC in 1987 and was appointed China editor in 2013, claimed the broadcaster was breaking equality law and adopting a bunker mentality that is failing to address the significant pay gap.

Referring to the “indefensible” difference in pay, revealed in part in a July report, Gracie said she felt obliged to speak out after attempts to convince executives to treat her fairly failed.

The first high-profile public resignation over equal pay is the most embarrassing moment yet for the BBC in the months since the pay gap was revealed.

In a letter addressed to BBC audiences, Gracie alleged that up to 200 women had filed pay complaints and warned the public that the BBC risked “wasting your licence fee on an unwinnable court fight against female staff”.

Gracie, who will leave her position in China to return to the BBC newsroom, claimed that men international editors were paid at least 50% more than women doing the same job.

The letter detailed how Gracie had insisted on equal pay after being urged to take the role in China.

However, in July, when the BBC was forced to reveal the wages of its highest-paid stars, she learnt that some colleagues were paid significantly more than her, including Jon Sopel, the North America editor, in the £200 000 to £249 999 (R3.3- to R4.2-million) bracket and Jeremy Bowen, the Middle East editor, in the £150 000 to £199 999 (R2.5 to R3.3-million) bracket. Gracie’s pay was not high enough to meet the threshold for publication.

Emphasising that she was seeking parity rather than a pay rise, the journalist said she had asked the BBC to ensure that all international editors were paid the same amount before being instead offered a higher salary that remained far short of equality.

She wrote: “For far too long, a secretive and illegal BBC pay culture has inflicted dishonourable choices on those who enforce it.”

In response, the BBC said recently published gender pay figures showed it was performing considerably better than many and are well below the national average.

“We have already conducted an independent judge-led audit of pay for rank and file staff which showed no systemic discrimination against women,” it said.

Her resignation won support from dozens of colleagues.

Yesterday she co-presented BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, during which she said she was moved by the positive reaction to her decision, which spoke of a depth of hunger for pay equality. – The Telegraph/AFP