Stars speak out on gender pay gap as BBC probe begins
BROADCASTER JON Snow has said management at media companies should be shamed into ensuring equal pay for women.
The veteran journalist and Channel 4 News presenter said that although “old habits die hard”, the situation for women in media is improving.
The broadcaster’s comments follow an announcement by the Equality And Human Rights Commission (EHRC) that it was launching an investigation into pay practices at the BBC.
Speaking at the The Television and Radio Industries Club (TRIC) Awards in London, he said more needs to be done to ensure women are paid “absolutely equally” in UK media. He suggested a solution to inequality in media pay was found in “a bit of honesty, a bit of candour”, adding: “People have to perhaps reveal their pay, and perhaps shame management into doing something about it.”
Snow said that he was pushed to take a pay cut at Channel 4, which he did, believing staff are still suffering inequities at work.
Presenter Gloria Hunniford also spoke out on the issue at the awards, saying she would be “really, really cross” if a man received more money than her for the same work.
Meanwhile, members of the BBC Women group, which includes Kirsty Wark, Jane Garvey, Louise Minchin and Mishal Husain, have welcomed the announcement on the EHRC investigation, but added that the BBC still has a “very long way” to go.
The Commission said it suspects that “some women at the organisation have not received equal pay for equal work”.