Government Guidance on Ethnicity Pay Reporting

Holly McLean
Solicitor
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The Government recently published guidance on ethnicity pay reporting to assist employers who wish to analyse and address their ethnicity pay and potential ethnicity pay differences in the workplace.

Under the current legislation in the UK, employers have a statutory duty to report and publish gender pay gap figures within their workplace, where they have more than 250 employees. Whilst the ethnicity pay reporting guidance is similar to these gender pay reporting obligations, it is clear that there is currently no legal duty on employers to implement reporting procedures for ethnicity pay. There are, however, an increasing number of employers who already report on their ethnicity pay data to enable them to develop and implement plans to tackle any inequality.

Investigating and reporting on ethnicity pay differences can help to ensure that pay and progression arrangements in the workplace is suitable for all ethnic groups. The Government guidance seeks to provide a consistent method of investigating and reporting on the ethnicity pay gap, to allow employers to take meaningful action and develop a plan to tackle ethnicity pay gaps in their workplace.

It is important to bear in mind that having an ethnicity pay gap is not the same as paying staff unequally. Even where all employees are paid according to a fair pay and reward policy, there may still exist a gap between the pay of individuals of different ethnicities. This can be for several reasons, for example, a particular ethnic group disproportionately applying for, being less aware of or being selected for certain roles.

For employers wishing to voluntarily report on ethnicity pay in their workplace, the Government guidance provides detailed assistance on collecting data, making pay calculations, and analysing the results.

If you would like to discuss ethnicity pay reporting for your workplace, or if we can provide any other support or assistance on any other employment law matters, please do not hesitate to call a member of the team on 0141 331 5150.

Topics: Ethnicity pay gap