Equal Pay Day: British women ‘work for free’ until end of year

This year, 10 November marked Equal Pay Day, the date from which British women essentially ‘work for free’ until January thanks to the gender pay gap.

Research by the Fawcett Society shows women in the UK were paid 13.9% less than men in similar roles in 2016. This is a slight improvement on previous years, but still a discouraging disparity that means women ‘stop earning’ as compared to their male counterparts until the end of the year.

According to figures from the Office for National Statistics, the Fawcett Society estimates it will take 62 years to close the gender pay gap and get men and women on equal salaries for equal work. The UK ranked 20^th in the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report, down from 18^th last year.

The good news is Equal Pay Day fell one day later than in 2015, proving that there is some work being done to ensure women are compensated equally for their work.

A study published in September showed that closing the disparity between male and female pay has the potential to add £150 billion to the UK economy by 2025.

Read the Fawcett Society’s report HERE.