The truth about the gender pay gap. And what to do about yours.
I could feel miffed about the reports last week that for every 90p I earn, my husband earns £1. In construction, things look bleaker - apparently, I’d only earn 76p to his £1 or at Easyjet, things become insulting at 36p to every £1. The figures make great headlines and they ruffle necessary feathers. They also pit men against women.
Read quickly, you might think that for the same job, a woman is paid sustainably less than a man. And that may be true but that’s not the gender pay gap. Despite its name, gender pay gap reporting is not about pay. Rather, it’s a measure that helps us to understand the gender make-up of a business: the level of equality in the number of men and women at different levels – most senior to most junior. And simply, the more men at the top, the worse the gender pay gap.
Knowing this, perhaps it's reasonable the gap exists. After all, many organisational structures today, and leadership in particular, are the emergence of a time when workforces were predominantly male.
However, many expect more gender balance by now. The introduction of birth control in the 60s gave women power to plan fertility around their careers. The new equality laws of the 70s supported women at work too and in 2017, gender pay gap reporting was introduced. Today in the UK, there are more women in higher education - 57% - than men. Overall, women are a growing feature in the paid workplace with a rise from 52.8% in the 70s to 72.2% today.
But, closing the gap and changing the shape of gender equality in organisations isn’t as straightforward as all that.
It’s an untangling and re-imagining of a deeply engrained, tightly woven web of systems, beliefs, cultural behaviours, societal expectations and stereotypes. It’s a shift in mindset; a fundamental change in how we work. The undoing will bring a sense of loss, fear, hostility, anger. In the rebuilding, there’ll be anxiety and nervousness. And also hope, acceptance, happiness, relief, wellbeing and rewards.
It’s a journey.
And a journey worth taking. We know that gender balanced businesses perform better. These figures will surely whet the appetite:
The most gender-diverse companies financially outperform their competition by up to 48% (Diversity wins: How inclusion matters, McKinsey & Company, 2020)
Companies with above-average diversity have 19% higher innovation revenues (How and Where Diversity Drives Financial Performance, Harvard Business Review, 2018)
Diversity of thinking enables groups to spot risks, reducing these by up to 30% (The diversity and inclusion revolution – eight powerful truths, Deloitte, 2018)
Not to mention the impact on your ability to attract talent and increase engagement and retention of your people – employees and customers, alike.
It’s also very beneficial for families and society and the global economy too.
With such alluring impact to the bottom line, it’s fair to imagine that everyone would be at it. Only we’re not. Our head is in the game, but our heart isn’t, yet. And who can blame us?
The messages about fixing the gender pay gap and creating more gender balance are stacked against both genders. We blame the men. And the women need fixing. Not very appealing, is it?
It’s not helpful either. It creates a default defensive behaviour and suggests we ‘treat everyone the same’, which doesn’t work either. Because men and women are different.
There are many tactics to take to help close the gender pay gap in your business: set targets, promote women to the board, implement sponsorship and mentoring programmes, embrace flexible working for men and women, encourage uptake of shared parental leave, provide unconscious bias training, be transparent about promotion and pay processes and more.
All helpful tactical practices, excellent to embrace. Yet tactics, as we know, are only sticking plasters for a wound that needs proper care, attention and time to heal. They’re never going to make the lasting shift that you really want to make.
Your most impactful option to close your gender pay gap is to set a new strategic imperative: to create a gender balanced business. A place where everyone understands that we are all different, where everyone feels able to be themselves and is able to contribute their unique and diverse perspective. Where you are not blamed for being a man. And you’re not being fixed because you’re a woman.
Creating a gender balanced business is a long game, driven by a willingness to listen, learn and change. It will be painful at times. Change usually is. Yet, the journey will be deeply rewarding. The results even more so. Are you ready to make your first move?
To find out how Alice can help you create a gender balanced business, including one to one coaching and leadership training, contact her here.
