Suspension to enforcement of gender pay gap regulations

This means that UK employers must report their gender pay gap statistics relating to the ‘snapshot’ date of 05 April by 04 October 2021.

From 2017, employers with a headcount of 250 or more, must comply with regulations on gender pay gap reporting. The gender pay gap is the difference between the average earnings of men and women across the workplace.

Employers must calculate, report and publish:

1. The percentage of men and women in each hourly pay quarter;
2. The mean (average) gender pay gap using hourly pay;
3. The median gender pay gap using hourly pay;
4. The percentage of men and women receiving bonus pay;
5. The mean (average) gender pay gap using bonus pay; and
6. The median gender pay gap using bonus pay.

The calculations are based on employer payroll data drawn from a specific ‘snapshot’ date each year. For private employers, this snapshot date is 05 April and the information above must be reported and published by 04 April of the following year. Private employers must also provide a written statement, signed by an appropriate person (for example a director for LLPs or partners for limited partnerships), confirming that the published information is accurate.

Employers can, at their own discretion, also publish a supporting narrative and action plan to help explain their gender pay gap and any actions they intend to take to address this.

Failure to comply with these obligations may lead the EHRC to take enforcement action which can ultimately include an unlimited fine, although it is interesting to note that EHRC enforcement has been limited since the regulations were introduced in 2017, and to date, there are no known or reported cases of employers having been fined for failing to report on time. Regardless, the threat of very public enforcement action and potential reputational damage should be sufficient to prevent employers from failing to comply.

It is important to remember that employers can report and publish their gender pay gap information at any time before the yearly deadline and the EHRC are actively encouraging employers to do that this year.