Gender pay reporting 2023
The Council is required by law to carry out Gender Pay Reporting under the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties and Public Authorities) Regulations 2017. This involves carrying out six calculations that show the difference between the average earnings of men and women in the Council; it does not involve publishing individual employee’s data.
As an employer with a headcount of more than 250, the Council is required to publish the following data annually, as at 31 March:
- the difference in the mean pay of full-pay men and women, expressed as a percentage;
- the difference in the median pay of full-pay men and women, expressed as a percentage;
- the difference in mean bonus pay of men and women, expressed as a percentage;
- the difference in median bonus pay of men and women, expressed as a percentage;
- the proportion of men and women who received bonus pay; and
- the proportion of full-pay men and women in each of four quartile pay bands.
Gender pay gap information is not the same as equal pay. Equal pay relates to men and women receiving equal pay for equal work. The gender pay gap is a measure of any disparity in pay between the average earnings of male and females.
North Warwickshire Borough Council Gender Pay Gap
This is the Council’s report for the snapshot date as at 31 March 2023.
- The mean gender pay gap for the Council is 2%
- The median gender pay gap for the Council is 0%
- The Council does not pay bonus payments
A positive pay gap indicates men are paid more than females and a negative pay gap indicates that females are paid more.
The figures set out above have been calculated using the standard methodologies used in the Equality Act 2010 (Gender Pay Gap Information) Regulations 2017.
Calculating the Gender Mean Pay Gap
The average mean hourly rate for female employees is £14.80 which is lower compared to male employees which is £15.12. This is a difference of 32 pence. The calculation is set out below:
£0.32/£15.12 x 100 = 2% gap
Calculating the Gender Median Pay Gap
The average median hourly rate for female employees is £13.95 which is equal to male employees which is also £13.95. This is a difference of 0 pence. The calculation is set out below:
£0.00/£13.95 x 100 = 0% gap.
| Pay quartiles by gender | Males | Females | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upper Quartile | 44% | 56% | Employees whose standard hourly rate places them above the upper quartile |
| Upper middle quartile | 50% | 50% | Employees whose standard hourly rate places them above the median but at or below the upper quartile |
| Lower middle quartile | 51% | 49% | Employees whose standard hourly rate places them above the lower quartile but at or below the median |
| Lower quartile | 45% | 55% | Employees whose standard hourly rate places them at or below the lower quartile |
Identifying underlying causes of Council's gender pay gap
Under the Equal Pay Act 1970, men and women must receive equal pay for:
- the same or broadly similar work;
- work rated as equivalent under a job evaluation scheme; or
- work of equal value.
The Council is committed to the principle of equal opportunities and equal treatment for all employees, regardless of sex, race, religion or belief, age, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy/maternity, sexual orientation, gender reassignment or disability. It has a clear policy of paying employees equally for the same or equivalent work regardless of their sex (or any other characteristic set out above). In order to achieve this it:
- operates job evaluation methodology to grade all jobs, using the National Joint Council Job Evaluation Scheme to ensure that jobs are paid fairly;
- ensures that allowances are awarded fairly and consistently across the Council;
- re-evaluates job roles and pay grades as necessary to ensure a fair structure.
The Council is therefore confident that its gender pay gap does not stem from paying men and women differently for the same or equivalent work. Rather its gender pay gap may be as a result of the roles in which men and women undertake within the Council and the salaries that these roles attract.
Across the UK economy as a whole, men are more likely than women to be in senior roles (especially very senior roles at the top of organisations), while women are more likely than men to be in front-line roles at the lower end of the organisation. Women are also more likely than men to have had breaks from work that have affected their career progression, for example to bring up children. They are also more likely to work part time, and many of the jobs that are available across the UK on a part-time basis are relatively low paid.
The above table depicts pay quartiles by gender and shows the Council’s workforce divided into four equal-sized groups based on hourly pay rates, with the lower quartile including the lowest-paid 25% of employees and the upper quartile covering the highest-paid 25%. In order for there to be no gender pay gap, there would need to be an equal ratio of men to women in each quartile.
How does the Council’s gender pay gap compare with that of other councils?
The vast majority of organisations have a gender pay gap, and the Council’s gap compares favourably with that of other organisations, including those within our industry. Gender pay gap figures can be affected by the composition of the workforce; female workers equate to 53% of the workforce included in our data for the reporting period.
Other public sector employers average a pay gap of 5.4% and all industries is 13.2% (Office for National Statistics (ONS) 2023 provisional data). At 2%, the Council's mean gender pay gap is, therefore, significantly better than other organisations within the public sector and private sector.
The median gender pay gap for other public sector employers is 14.3% and all industries is 14.9% (Office for National Statistics (ONS) 2023 provisional data). At 0%, the Council's median gender pay gap is, therefore, significantly better than other organisations within the public sector and private sector.
What is the Council doing to address its gender pay gap?
While the Council 's gender pay gap compares favourably with that of the public sector generally and the whole UK economy, this is not a subject about which the Council is complacent and we are committed to seeking to reduce the current gender pay gap further, particularly within the quartiles. However, we also recognise that our scope to act is limited in some areas - for example we have no direct control over the subjects that individuals choose to study or the career choices that they make.
To date, the steps the Council has taken to promote gender diversity in all areas of its workforce include:
- A Flexible Working Policy which is available to all employees regardless of their gender and applies in the majority of job roles / service areas.
- Encouraging women into senior roles and this is demonstrated through the gender profile of the Extended Management Team, which on 31st March 2023, was split 50% male and 50% female and that females account for 56% of the upper quartile.