The gender pay gap is alive and well, with women on average earning 20% less than men globally. When pay gaps exist, it sends a message that not all employees are valued equally. Yet only 62% of US and Canada businesses currently have or are planning to implement pay equity practices according to Payscale.
The push for pay transparency is growing louder — employees are expecting it and lawmakers are enforcing it. Companies that don't have pay equity practices are at risk of losing top talent or facing fines. The regulatory landscape is swiftly changing, with new laws taking effect across U.S. states and cities, and the EU Pay Transparency Directive mandating robust audits from EU and non-EU employers with more than 100 employees.
No matter what the driver, business leaders and organizations should take action to close the pay gap and address disparities in opportunity and leadership. Among companies that voluntarily share pay equity and retention data with Catalyst, 96% conduct pay equity audits. Not surprisingly, these companies also outperform industry benchmarks for gender diversity across all organizational levels. It’s proof that progress is possible and an important driver of talent retention.
Global research shows that pay transparency can significantly reduce or even eliminate pay inequities across gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and other dimensions of diversity. Beyond promoting equity, pay transparency gives companies a competitive edge, reducing recruitment costs. Most employees would switch jobs with a different company for greater pay transparency, even if the salary remains the same. Despite the benefits, many organizations remain hesitant, concerned about the possible downsides of implementing pay transparency.
Based on earnings from 2022, for every $1 earned by White men in the US...
The gender wage gap remains a global issue, highlighted by International Equal Pay Day on 18 September. Equal pay impacts not just women but all marginalized groups facing pay disparities, many of whom have dedicated days for advocacy and awareness.
The gender pay gap may vary among countries, but it is a persistent pattern caused by a variety of systemic factors including job segregation, differences in education, and a lack of pay transparency, discrimination, and bias. Some would say, however, that the gender pay gap is because “women aren’t ambitious.” In podcast episode of Breaking with Tradition, financial journalist and author Josie Cox has a lot of evidence to the contrary.