Closing the Gender Pay Gap in a Snapshot!
6th June 2022
What is the Gender Pay Gap?
The gender pay gap is the difference in the average hourly wage of men and women across a workforce. In Ireland, Eurostat data show that the gender pay gap has fluctuated over the past decade. It rose from 12.7% in 2011 to a high of 14.4% in 2017, before dropping to 11.3% in 2019, the final year that figures are available. Ireland’s gender pay gap is lower than the EU average of 14.1%.
The Gender Pay Gap Information Act 2021 requires organisations to report on their hourly gender pay gap across a range of metrics. The Regulations which set out the detail on how these calculations will be made are published at the link below:
The Employment Equality Act 1998 (Section 20A)(Gender Pay Gap Information) Regulations 2022
A Snapshot View!
Organisations with over 250 employees are being asked to report on their Gender Pay Gap for the first time this year.
They are to select a ‘snapshot’ date this month (June) and their report will be based on the employees they have on this date. Companies will then have six months to prepare their calculations before reporting six months later, during December.
An organisation should carry out a headcount of all persons employed by them on the snapshot date, including employees not rostered to work on that date and employees on leave.
Ending Pay Inequality for Women
Earlier this year, to coincide with IWD (March 8th), the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Roderic O’Gorman, announced details of the introduction of gender pay gap reporting in Ireland.
“When it comes to participation in the labour market, women face far greater obstacles than men. Persisting gender stereotypes, the glass ceiling preventing women from senior positions, and the fact that women take on a much larger share of family caring responsibilities and unpaid work in the home, are all contributing factors to a significant pay disparity between women and men in Ireland.
“Advancing women’s rights and equality is a priority for this Government, and taking real and effective action to end pay inequality for women must be key to that. The Gender Pay Gap Act requires employers to not only report on the gender pay gap in their organisation, but also places on obligation on employers to provide details of measures being taken to reduce that gap.
“This reporting requirement will help to ensure pay transparency exists in organisations, and will play an important role in achieving gender equality in the workplace.”
What Details will the Report Include?
Organisations are asked to produce a report providing the following details:
(a) the difference between the mean hourly remuneration of employees of the male gender and that of employees of the female gender expressed as a percentage of the mean hourly remuneration of employees of the male gender;
(b) the difference between the median hourly remuneration of employees of the male gender and that of employees of the female gender expressed as a percentage of the median hourly remuneration of employees of the male gender;
(c) the difference between the mean bonus remuneration of employees of the male gender and that of employees of the female gender expressed as a percentage of the mean bonus remuneration of employees of the male gender;
(d) the difference between the median bonus remuneration of employees of the male gender and that of employees of the female gender expressed as a percentage of the median bonus remuneration of employees of the male gender;
(e) the difference between the mean hourly remuneration of part-time employees of the male gender and that of part-time employees of the female gender expressed as a percentage of the mean hourly remuneration of part-time employees of the male gender;
(f) the difference between the median hourly remuneration of part-time employees of the male gender and that of part-time employees of the female gender expressed as a percentage of the median hourly remuneration of part-time employees of the male gender;
(g) the percentage of all employees of the male gender who were paid bonus remuneration and the percentage of all employees of the female gender who were paid such remuneration;
(h) the percentage of all employees of the male gender who received benefits in kind and the percentage of all employees of the female gender who received such benefits.
(i) The difference between the mean hourly remuneration of employees of the male gender on temporary contracts and that of employees of the female gender on such contracts expressed as a percentage of the mean hourly remuneration of employees of the male gender;
(j) The difference between the median hourly remuneration of employees of the male gender on temporary contracts and that of employees of the female gender on such contracts expressed as a percentage of the median hourly remuneration of employees of the male gender;
(k) the respective percentages of all employees who fall within each of
(i) the lower remuneration quartile pay band,
(ii) the lower middle remuneration quartile pay band,
(iii) the upper middle remuneration quartile pay band, or
(iv) the upper remuneration quartile pay band,
who are of the male gender and who are of the female gender.
The relevant employer must also publish a report setting out—
(i) in the employer’s opinion, the reasons for such differences in that employer’s case, and
(ii) the measures (if any) being taken, or proposed to be taken, by the employer to eliminate or reduce such differences in that employer’s case.
The gender pay gap information must be published on the employer’s website or in some other way that is accessible to all its employees and to the public.
