We are required to publish calculations that display and help explain any gender pay gap
Composition of staff
We employ more women than men. However, the majority of female members of staff are concentrated in the two middle quartile pay bands, while the majority of men are counted in either the lowest or highest pay bracket.
This distribution helps to explain the reason for the difference between the mean and median figures.
Understanding the lower pay quartile
A number of staff counted in the lower quartile band work in more manual roles.
The ratio of male to female members of staff is ordinarily higher in manual roles and we're no different.
Strategies we're implementing to increase gender diversity in this area includes creating gender neutral job titles.
Understanding the upper pay quartile
Working hours and gender
Our data reveals a correlation between working hours and gender.
Reflecting the national situation, many more women work part-time than men.
However, while there are a large amount of part-time posts here, there is a lower percentage of part-time workers in the upper half of our pay spectrum.
Strategies to increase gender diversity in the upper pay quartile
- The council has an agile working culture. Working flexibly is encouraged and supported, with the majority of staff having the ability to work flexible hours and in a range of locations including from home.
- Prior to recruiting externally or seeking candidates for promotion, if a post is full-time we carefully consider whether it could be undertaken on a part-time or job share basis.
- It is recognised that working part-time can impact on the ability to attend training courses, which may then impact on career progression. We increase accessibility through offering a range of flexible development opportunities. We also consider our training programmes carefully, putting on shorter courses, split over different days, deliver in a hybrid manner, or record sessions so they can be viewed at any time.
- We provide training and dedicated support to our managers to ensure fair and non-discriminating processes are followed in matters such as recruitment and promotion.
- In order to reduce the gender pay gap further, we offer supportive options for those returning from maternity leave and encourage greater sharing of caring responsibilities through raising awareness of benefits and initiatives such as flexible working, shared parental leave and tax-free childcare.
While it may take time to see changes, these measures may reduce the gender pay gap in the upper quartile in the future. Progression and appointments to senior posts will continue to be monitored in order to evaluate the success of these initiatives.