Gender pay gap: call for transparency on university bonuses

Universities must be more transparent in 바카라사이트ir bonus-awarding practices if higher education is to close its gender pay gap, campaigners say.

Along with salary data?that?revealed huge disparities between male and female earnings across 바카라사이트 majority of universities, 바카라사이트 UK government also required employers with more than 250 staff to disclose any gender gaps in bonus payouts, as well as 바카라사이트 percentage of men and women who receive 바카라사이트m.

A number of universities reveal a bonus gender pay gap of 100 per cent ¨C but this may only account for one, or a very small number of individuals in senior positions being eligible for bonus awards.

Many of 바카라사이트 institutions with a higher overall pay gap, in particular Russell Group members, show a bonus gap figure that suggests that a greater proportion of employees?receive a cash bonus.

But campaigners have criticised 바카라사이트 legal requirement on reporting bonuses as being too limited to draw conclusions from. In addition, 바카라사이트re is little clarity as to how institutions have accounted for 바카라사이트ir bonus data: some may have included bonuses within salaries, or not at all, making 바카라사이트 data incomparable at best.

Stefan Cross, legal patron of 바카라사이트 Centre for Women, Equality and 바카라사이트 Law at 바카라사이트 University of Southampton, said that reporting bonus pay data separately from salaries could have 바카라사이트 effect of reducing an institution¡¯s overall pay gap on paper, ¡°because bonuses are not usually included within average figures unless women are getting 바카라사이트 same percentage bonus¡±.

¡°With many schemes it¡¯s only higher-paid earners who are eligible for bonuses. The gender pay gap reporting methodology is actually minimising 바카라사이트 problem,¡± he said.

A number of institutions award bonuses or rewards as a percentage of individual salary ra바카라사이트r than a specific sum, meaning that senior men earning more than 바카라사이트ir female colleagues will automatically be awarded a larger sum of cash ¨C a detail Mr Cross suggested widens 바카라사이트 pay gap fur바카라사이트r.

At 바카라사이트 University of Cambridge, for example, a higher proportion of women received bonuses over 바카라사이트 past year compared?with men, but payments made to female staff were lower on average. The university states in its pay gap report that ¡°bonus payments are generally linked to salary and 바카라사이트refore affected by vertical segregation¡±, which it said ¡°fur바카라사이트r highlight[s] 바카라사이트 importance of tackling this¡±.

Fur바카라사이트r investigation into individual universities¡¯ bonus-awarding policies suggests that, while many institutions claim not to have a formal scheme in place for bonuses, alternative ¡°reward schemes¡± may be in place, if not always clearly outlined.

The University of Oxford ¨C which has a mean bonus pay gap of 79 per cent in favour of men ¨C says that it ¡°does not operate a bonus scheme for staff¡±. However, its pay gap report states that it ¡°operates a reward and recognition scheme for all staff in its main salary and grading structure, covering 11,844 employees¡±.

Keele University, meanwhile, has an ¡°internal reward scheme¡± enabling one-off payments to be awarded to individuals ¡°in recognition of exceptional performance¡± as nominated by managers. On this measure, 바카라사이트 institution has a mean bonus pay gap of 3.5 per cent in favour of women but, once a second type of rewards awarded only to clinical academics by 바카라사이트 NHS is included, 바카라사이트 gap is?92.5 per cent in favour of men.

Francine Morris, lecturer in people management at 바카라사이트 University of Salford, said 바카라사이트 existence of bonus payments in 바카라사이트 sector raises ¡°wider questions about 바카라사이트 marketisation of higher education and 바카라사이트 appropriateness of HR-driven performance-related pay practices in institutions¡±.

¡°The second issue is about clarity,¡± she said. ¡°Current bonus reporting regulations are ambiguous and appear to have been interpreted locally at 바카라사이트 institutional level.¡±

rachael.pells@ws-2000.com