Question

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, in the context of the reintroduction of enforcement on Gender Pay Gap reporting requirements in October, what estimate she has made of the proportion of employers that have put in place plans to tackle their pay gaps.

Over nine thousand employers reported their gender pay gap data for 2020/21, having been given an additional six months before enforcement action began in October, to reflect the impact of the pandemic on businesses. Many took the additional step of producing an action plan detailing how they intend to close their gap.

As there is no mandatory requirement to publish an action plan, not every employer who has one will have noted this on the Government reporting portal, making it difficult to establish an accurate estimate of how many have a plan to tackle their pay gap.

The reporting regulations have helped to motivate employers to take action, and the UK’s gender pay gap currently stands at a record low of 15.5%.