Gender pay gap in the UK 1997-2021

In 2021 the difference between average hourly earnings for men and women in the United Kingdom for all workers was 15.4 percent, compared with 7.9 percent for full-time workers, and -2.7 percent for part-time workers. During the provided time period, the gender pay gap was at its highest in 1997, when it was 27.5 percent for all workers. Compared with 1997, the gender pay gap has fallen by 12.1 percent for all workers, 9.5 percent for full-time workers and 2.1 percent for part-time workers.

Gender pay gap higher in older age groups

Although the gender pay gap among younger age groups was quite small in 2021, the double-digit pay gap evident in older age groups served to keep the overall gap high. The gender pay gap for workers aged between 22 to 29 for example was 0.9 percent, compared with 12.3 percent for people in their 40s and 50s. Additionally the gender pay gap for people aged over 60 has changed little since 1997, falling by just 2.8 percent during this time period, compared with an 11.7 percent reduction among workers in their 40s.

Positions of power

As of 2020, women are unfortunately still relatively underrepresented in leadership positions at Britain’s top businesses. Among FTSE 100 companies for example, just eight percent of CEOs were female, falling to just 3.6 percent among FTSE 250 companies, and 4.9 percent among FTSE 350 companies. Representation was better when it came to FTSE 100 boardrooms, with 36.2 percent of positions at this level being filled by women. In the corridors of political power, the proportion of female MPs reached its highest ever level after the 2019 election at 34 percent.