Tackling suspect gender pay gap data

Oliver Varney, the gender pay gap lead for the EHRC discusses the EHRC’s scrutiny of data provided by GB employers who have 250 or more employees.

We at the Equality and Human Rights Commission play a key role in closing the pay gap between men and women across England, Wales and Scotland. As Britain’s equality regulatory body, we have the responsibility of enforcing Gender Pay Gap Regulations. We do this by using our formal enforcement power to make sure employers disclose their gender pay gap information.

These data are crucial for employers to identify whether and why there are pay gaps in their organization, allowing them to take action and close these gaps.

We will continue to monitor employers to ensure that they have provided accurate and timely information. It’s not just a requirement; it’s a law.

What is suspected data?

Data that is suspect can come in many different forms. It may be malicious when an employer tries to hide their pay gap with false data or it could be a genuine error made by the employee.

Employers may not realize that publishing data with questionable origins can have legal and business implications.

How can suspicious data be dealt with?

It is the responsibility of employers to ensure that data submitted by them are accurate. Employers can reduce the chances of inaccurate data being submitted by taking some simple steps.

Checking that:

• Calculations have been made with all steps included
• The calculations are in order and without typing errors
• The figures are the same as those on the UK Government website. Other quality assurance procedures have also been implemented.

Keep a record of all calculations made to arrive at the reported figures so that you can provide an explanation if needed. Employers must make sure that a senior or director signs the report and verifies its accuracy.

How do you calculate?

The EHRC site has extensive guidance to help you. You must provide the following information if you are an employer:

• The median and mean gender pay gaps for hourly wages and bonuses
• Percentage of women and men in each quarter’s hourly wage
• The percentage of women and men receiving bonuses.

The figures are either reported in whole percentages, or they can be rounded up to one decimal.

We will now review this year’s submissions, and we will contact any organisations we suspect may have published questionable data. We are undertaking a complex task. If necessary, we will take more severe action against organisations who provide suspect data without taking steps to rectify it.

These vital statistics are an important step in ensuring that workplaces don’t discriminate against women. Employers who publish solid data can use this information to determine what actions they should take to eliminate the pay gap in their workplace.

In collaboration with the Chartered Institute of Management, we have created a toolkit to help employers reduce their pay gap. The UK government also introduced the Employment Rights Bill. This new legislation is expected to make the publication of gender-equality action plans mandatory. Employers should prepare for this by making sure that the data they use in their plans are accurate.

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