Gender pay gap: an update

Draft Regulations for the new requirement on larger employers to publish a gender pay gap figure are now expected to be published in early 2016.

Compulsory gender pay reporting is being introduced under s.147 of the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015 and Regulations made under s.78 of the Equality Act 2010. Regulations must be introduced within 12 months of the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015 being passed (which occurred on 26 March 2015).

The new legislation comes after a period of consultation with employers on how gender pay gap information should be reported. The Government has recently announced that the gender pay reporting obligations will also extend to public sector employers.

It is widely anticipated that public, private and voluntary sector employers with 250 or more employees will be expected to publish a single annual figure setting out the gender pay gap based on a standard set of data and method of calculation for their workforce as a whole. This figure is likely to include elements such as shift and location payments, as well as basic pay.

A second level of reporting could include a separate figure on the gender bonus gap, and may also require or recommend that employers break down their headline figure by seniority or other factors to give a more detailed view.

In addition to any numeric reporting, employers will be able to provide commentary explaining the factors that contribute to their gender pay gap and actions they are taking to close the gap.