With less than 2 weeks to go until the revised deadline of midnight on the 4th October 2021, around half of the 11,000 employers who are required to publish their 2020/21 gender pay gap data have still not done so.
Gender Pay Gap Reporting
Further to our previous article, due to the problems caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) formally announced on the 23rd February 2021 that the deadline for the gender pay gap reporting year 2020/21, would be moved to midnight on the the 4th October 2021. The change was also later confirmed on the Government website. That means that for those who fail to meet the revised gender pay gap reporting deadline, enforcement action would begin on the 5th October 2021.
In the absence of the extension, the deadline for public sector employers to report their gender pay gap data would have been the 30th March 2021, with a snapshot date of the 31st March 2020. For private sector employers and voluntary organisations, the deadline would have been the 4th April 2021, with a snapshot date of the 5th April 2020.
Of the approximately 11,000 employers who are required to report their gender pay gap data, as at the 11th April 2021, just 2664 employers had done so (equating to 24.22%). This was despite the Government and others encouraging employers to report their data in advance of the original deadlines.
Furthermore, as of the 22nd September 2021, just 5638 employers have reported their gender pay gap data, equating to 51.25%. Hence, with less than 2 weeks to go before the revised deadline expires, just under half of employers have left their reporting very late.
Analyses Of The Early Data
In a recent report, the accountantancy firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), carried out an early analyses of the gender pay gap data that had come in so far. They found that:-
- The mean gender pay gap has fallen to 12.5% for the 2020/21 reporting year, a third consecutive fall in the gap, and down from 14.3% for the first reporting year of 2017/18. In the 2020/21 reporting year, 58% of employers reported a fall in their mean gender pay gap
- The mean gender bonus gap fell from 37.6% in 2017/18, to 33.6% in 2020/21, with 68% of employers reporting a fall in the 2020/21 reporting year
- Of those that reported their data by the original deadline, a greater proportion of larger employers did so (i.e. 60% of those with 20,000 or more employees) compared with smaller organisations.
- In terms of the median gender pay gap, the report found year on year falls going back the entire 4 years of reporting
Nevertheless, the PwC report focused only on the 1665 employers who have reported their data in each and every reporting year, and is at odds with the statistics produced by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), which found that the gender pay gap had simply remained constant over the last two years. The CIPD found that the median gender pay gap was 12.8% for the reporting year 2020/21, the same as for the reporting year 2018/19.
Moreover, the inclusion and diversity director at PwC, Katy Bennett, cautioned that: “In reality, with so many companies still to disclose their gender pay gap, it will only be after October that we get a true picture of this year’s reporting."
Furthermore, Joe Levenson, the director of communications and campaigns at YoungWomen's Trust points out that: “We are concerned that this data is likely to already be out of date as a result of the devastating impact of the coronavirus crisis ……Young women on low pay were already struggling to get by before the coronavirus crisis hit and since then many have already suffered a loss of earnings due to redundancy, furlough or juggling precarious and insecure work with caring responsibilities.“
Sam Smethers, the chief executive at the Fawcett Society, also highlights that: “While a fall in the gender pay gap is positive, we only have a partial picture because the impact of coronavirus means a quarter of employers are missing from the data set…..They are likely to be the ones hit hardest by the pandemic.“
The Consequences Of Missing The Gender Pay Gap Reporting Deadline
Historically, around a quarter of employers leave their gender pay gap reporting until the final few days before the deadline is due to expire. In relation to the 2018/19 year, for instance, a quarter of the 10,428 organisations that reported on time, waited until the final 36 hours to publish their data.
Around 300 organisations failed to report their gender pay gap data on time in 2018/19, but that was substantially down from the approximately 1500 that failed to submit their data on time the year before
Those employers who fail to lodge their gender pay gap data on time face enforcement action. Private sector employers in those circumstances are investigated under section 20 of the Equality Act 2006, and would be issued with an unlawful act notice. If they fail to comply with the notice, then the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) can apply for a court order requiring them to do so. Should the private sector employer breach the court order, then this is punishable upon conviction with a level 5 (unlimited) fine.
Moreover, once a case reaches the investigation stage, then details are published on the EHRC's website at the start of the investigation. The final report is also published on the website.
