Firms to give gender pay info

THOUSANDS of employers will have to publish gender figures for the first time from today under new measures aimed at closing the pay gap between men and women.

Firms employing at least 250 workers will have to give wage figures by April next year, with the regulations covering more than 15 million employees.

The government said the UK was one of the first countries in the world to report on the gender pay gap, currently just over 18%.

Ministers said the new regulations will help firms take action to close the difference in the pay of male and female workers.

Minister for women and equalities Justine Greening said: “We have more women in work, more womenled businesses than ever before and the highest proportion of women on the boards of our biggest companies.

“This has helped us to narrow the gender pay gap to a record 18.1%, but we want to eliminate it completely.

“Helping women to reach their full potential isn’t only the right thing to do, it makes good economic sense and is good for British business.

“I am proud that the UK is championing gender equality and now those employers that are leading the way will clearly stand out with these requirements.”

The Chartered Management Institute said its research showed that four out of five managers had witnessed gender discrimination in their workplace in the past year.

Only two out of five challenged bias in decisions on pay.