As we come to the end of Black History month, otherwise known as BHM, it is time to look back to see what has been achieved during the month and for those of you who are more adventurous, over this calendar year. BHM was first celebrated in the United Kingdom, in London, in 1987, to celebrate the achievements in society of Black people. Whether you are in the camp of seeing 1 month as an important time of the year, or the other camp which believes having 1 month limits the understanding of Black history, one thing that is clear is that race is one of the 9 protected characteristics under the UK's Equality Act 2010.
Sex is another protected characteristic under the Act, stipulating that you must not be discriminated against because you are a particular sex. The wording of the Act goes on to say that "
In the Equality Act sex can mean either male or female, or a group of people like men or boys, or women or girls." How many of us view ourselves as just a race or a gender?
From the 5 April 2017, for private and voluntary organisations and the 31 March 2017, for the public sector in the UK, employers employing 250 employees or more had to carry out calculations to determine gender pay gap results, having of course collated that information. The results have to be posted by the 4 April 2018 on the organisation's website in a publicly available manner. There is a requirement to publish 6 calculations:
- average gender pay gap as a mean average
- average gender pay gap as a median average
- average bonus gender pay gap as a mean average
- average bonus gender pay gap as a median average
- proportion of males receiving a bonus payment and proportion of females receiving a bonus payment
- proportion of males and females when divided into four groups ordered from lowest to highest pay
Progressive organisations may wish to do a broader examination of their data so they achieve a more holistic picture of their employees, therefore enabling individuals and the workforce to be recognised for their diversity and enriching all our history and experiences.
A click on the picture supporting this blog will take you to the Office of National Statistics website where you can test your knowledge on the Gender Pay Gap.