Women get lower rewards for loyalty to job

WOMEN are rewarded less for loyalty to an employer, an analysis of the gender pay gap has suggested.

Both men and women’s pay grows substantially after 20 years in the same role – but men get a bigger uplift. And the gender pay gap grows the longer someone is in the job.

Full-time male new starters earn 5.3 per cent more than female workers with the same level of experience. By the time the employees hit a decade in their role, men can be expected to earn around 9 per cent more than women, and those with more than 20 years in the job earn around 11.9 per cent more than their female colleagues.

Women’s earning growth is also slower than men’s – average hourly wage for a man with 20 years in a role was £18.35 per hour, 59.6 per cent higher than a man with less than a year in the job.

A woman with 20 years in a role was on average earning £16.16 per hour, 48.4 per cent higher than women who had been in a job for less than a year.

While the UK’S overall gender pay gap has been steadily shrinking over the years, the median salary for men working full-time is still 9 per cent higher than it is for women.

The figures from the Office for National Statistics also show that there are big discrepancies in pay between men and women engaged in similar jobs.

The most unequal occupations in terms of pay are for skilled trades roles, with the gender pay gap reaching 24.8 per cent among these jobs. The report found that the most important known factor contributing to the gender pay gap was occupation.

Many of the reasons for the gap were unknown, however, and while some of the difference is thought to be down to discrimination, it is not known to what extent this is a factor.

“The analysis would benefit from information on family structures, education and career breaks; without these the unexplained element is overstated,” the report concluded.

It added that “the unexplained element should not be interpreted as a measure of discriminatory behaviour, though it is possible that this plays a part”.