Today, 20th November 2024, marks Equal Pay Day (EPD), the day when, based on average pay, women effectively stop being paid compared to men and work for free for the rest of the year. The Fawcett Society calculates EPD based on the mean full-time Gender Pay Gap, which currently stands at 11.3%.

Since last year, the gap has grown wider. This may be partly due to improvements in the Government’s ASHE (Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings) methodology to include the highest earners, suggesting that the Gender Pay Gap may have been under-estimated in previous years.

We must confront pay discrimination head-on. Our Equal Pay Day report reveals that almost two-thirds of the gender pay gap would still exist even if men and women worked the same hours, in the same jobs, and were of the same age, ethnicity, and background. This unexplained portion suggests pay discrimination is still a major driver.

To mark Equal Pay Day 2024 we have created The Gender Pay Gap Calculator which allows women to find out their Gender Pay Gap compared to the average man.

While the calculator is a fun tool, the Gender Pay Gap is anything but. The growing Gender Pay Gap means, on average, every month working women take home £631 less than men - that’s £7,572 over the course of the year.

The Fawcett Society is calling on the government to co-design and deliver a strategy to reduce the Gender Pay Gap in the next decade.

We're calling for:

  A joined-up strategy: Fawcett Society urges the government to implement a transformational, cross-departmental strategy to close the gender pay gap, not just rely on isolated actions.

  Flexible work must be the default: Flexible working should be standard across all sectors and levels. Currently, women are more likely to take part-time, low-paid, or insecure jobs to balance caregiving, which perpetuates inequality.

  Transformation of childcare system: Urgent overhaul needed to address the ‘Motherhood Penalty’ caused by the lack of affordable childcare and well-paid flexible work, limiting women’s career opportunities.

  Confront pay discrimination: Address pay discrimination, as nearly two-thirds of the Gender Pay Gap remains unexplained.

  Tackle intersectional pay gaps: Strategies to close the Gender Pay Gap must specifically address the higher pay disparities faced by Black, minoritised and disabled women, who experience significantly greater pay gaps than White British men.

Help us spread the word! Share our latest report and the Equal Pay Calculator on social media. Don’t forget to tag @fawcettsociety and use #EqualPayDay24.

If advancing women’s rights is your passion, join us at Fawcett by becoming a member. Together, we can drive meaningful change and create a future where every woman has the opportunity to thrive.

In solidarity and determination
The Fawcett Team