News: Nearly 19 percent gender pay gap exists: Report

Compensation & Benefits

Nearly 19 percent gender pay gap exists: Report

A Korn Ferry Hay Group report has stated that the gap between pay that women get is nearly 19 percent less than that of men in India. And for similar jobs, the gap is around 3.5 percent.
Nearly 19 percent gender pay gap exists: Report

The lack of representation of women in the some of the highest-paying job functions and industries has created a significant gap between the pay that they receive in comparison to men. This is according to a According to Korn Ferry Hay Group report. Women in India earn nearly 19 percent (18.8 percent to precise) less than men. This figure is higher than the global figure stands at 17.6 percent.  

The study done by the groups’ PayNet database tracking system, surveyed more than 8 million employees in 33 countries, including 57,000 job holders in India.  Although this figure pertains to every job level, there exists disparity even when it comes to the same job as well. "Our data shows that when it comes to thinking about pay on the basis of gender, a man and a woman in the same company, doing the same job, will usually be paid nearly the same - but still favouring men by 1.6 per cent," said Ben Frost, a global reward expert at Hay Group said, in a press release, adding that the data shows this very consistently, from Sweden to South Africa

Staying true to the expectations, this percentage rises when it comes to India. The report stated that for the similar job levels and functions the pay gap exists at 3.5 percent within the Indian context. The report goes on to point out that this gender pay gap impacts companies almost identically across the globe, adding that firms are perhaps looking for a solution in the wrong places. The number of women found in high paying industries is lacking. Furthermore, even in lower-paying sectors where women dominate - such as hospitality and tourism - men still hold the vast majority of management and executive roles - the highest paid jobs within any industry. "The biggest driver of the pay gap is a lack of women in high-paying industries, senior functions and in leadership positions. If we want to close the pay gap and make a difference, it is the road to the top jobs that needs to be the focus. This is the pay gap problem," Frost added. This comes in light of the recent reports pointing towards the lack of women representation in the board of directors across industries in India.

There is a need for organizations to look deeper into their ways acquiring and retaining women talent for the top job and take constructive steps towards plugging the leaks in the talent pipeline. Echoing the sentiment Peggy Hazard, managing principal at Korn Ferry Hay Group and co-author of the study said "Only when we have more women in higher paying jobs will we see the gender pay gap begin to close - not only by further equaling pay at similar job levels, but ensuring females reach the most senior roles, at the top of global organizations".  

Advising organizations she added "Organizations need to scrutinize the unconscious male bias in the ways they hire, develop, promote and reward employees, and define successful career paths, to ensure they optimize female talent".

Read full story

Topics: Compensation & Benefits, Diversity

Did you find this story helpful?

Author

QUICK POLL

How do you envision AI transforming your work?