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    Chapter 3: Create fair employment and work for all

    Employment and pay by gender

    Despite the benefits and efforts to improve gender equality in the workplace, women still earn considerably less than their male colleagues. The gender pay gap across almost all industries remains stubbornly high.

    Nationally, women are paid 16% less than men. The gender pay gap is smaller in Gateshead and in the North East, being 8% for both areas. This difference between national and local reflects the overall lower average income between the North and South and the opportunities for all persons living in the North East and Gateshead. The average salary in the South is £28,274 per year compared with just £23,991 per year in the North. In other words, workers in the South earn approximately £4,283 per year than those in the North.
    (Office for National Statistics. (2022). Gender pay gap in the UK: 2021)

    According to an ONS estimate, 15,000 (16%) of all employee jobs in Gateshead fell below the Living Wage Foundation rate of £9.90 an hour in 2022. This is equivalent to 6,000 (13.3%) male employee jobs and 8,000 female jobs (18.9%), or 5,000 (8.2%) full time and 9,000 (36.6%) part time.

    The jobs that have the biggest gender pay gap include:
    • Educational professional jobs
    • Financial managers and directors
    • Functional managers and directors
    • Marketing, sales and advertising directors
    • Waste disposal and environmental 
    • Services managers
    • Business associate professionals
    • Vehicle technicians, mechanics and 
    • Electricians
    • Health care practice managers
    • Education managers
    • IT project manager

    Whereas the jobs with the smallest gender pay gap and which tend to pay the lowest hourly rate include:

    • Personal assistants and secretaries
    • Childminders
    • Child and early years officers
    • Elementary sales occupations 
    • Beauticians and related occupations
    • Hairdressers and barbers
    • Shelf fillers
    • Educational support assistants
    • Waiters, waitresses and coffee shop workers
    • Chefs
    FACTGender pay gap exists in Gateshead: Women are paid 8% less than men.

    There is an upward trend in part-time gender pay gap, which has been continuing since 2015. This is because women fill more part-time jobs, which in comparison with full-time jobs have lower hourly average pay.

    Age is also a factor in the gender pay gap. For under 40 years, the gender pay gap for full time employees is low, at 3.2% or below. However, when women reach age 40 and above, lower numbers of women progress into higher paid roles. In contrast, men take up the majority of these senior roles with greater pay. As such, the pay gap widens.
    (Office for National Statistics. (2022). Gender pay gap in the UK: 2021)

    Employers can promote gender equality in the workplace by being transparent about wages, to ensure women aren't receiving less than men in equivalent roles, especially because women are less likely to negotiate their salary

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