A gender pay gap is bad for all of us

THE publication of the gender pay gap data is a triumph of transparency which could well force companies to think hard about how they recruit, train and promote staff.

Wales and the UK have been in the throes of massive social change since World War II but at more than three-quarters of companies men are still paid more than women.

An important debate is now starting as to why this glaring disparity exists and how best it can be tackled.

Our economy is not functioning fairly or efficiently when the female half of the population suffers from a median average pay gap of 9.7%.

It is all the more vital to ensure that women receive the full pay they deserve when households are suffering the effects of years of pay stagnation and there are profound concerns about the threat of rising child poverty in Wales.

This issue should not pit men against women – quite the opposite. Everybody suffers in an economy where talent is neither recognised nor rewarded and employers get away with underpaying staff.

Both the political left and the right should be concerned.

Unions should redouble efforts to ensure that people are not exploited and that those who want to get on will have the opportunity to gain skills and opportunities. Businesses should be worried by the evidence that too few women are reaching senior positions.

A company is hardly drawing from the widest talent pool if its managers and highest-paid staff are from similar backgrounds.

There are important questions to ask about education and culture. Are women steered away from demanding but well-remunerated subjects such as engineering?

Do we have so dysfunctional a management tradition in the UK that people think it is impossible to hold down a senior position and play a full role in raising a family?

A good executive is not afraid to delegate and will strive to empower staff. He or she should set an example by not working excessive hours; we have a serious problem if bosses think a leader should be an obsessive control freak.

Action is also required if a lack of affordable childcare and help for elderly people is forcing workers to scrap their career ambitions. We need to forge a nation in which people can provide financially for their families and use their talents to the fullest extent while having time to spend with the people they love; we all win when injustice ends. The Western Mail newspaper is published by Media Wales a subsidiary company of Trinity Mirror PLC, which is a member of IPSO, the Independent Press Standards Organisation. The entire contents of The Western Mail are the copyright of Media Wales Ltd. It is an offence to copy any of its contents in any way without the company’s permission. If you require a licence to copy parts of it in any way or form, write to the Head of Finance at Six Park Street. The recycled paper content of UK newspapers in 2016 was 62.8%