Closing the gender pay gap

Councillor Claire Thomas and the Liberal Democrats are launching a campaign calling on employers to close the gender pay gap in Hull and the East Riding.

Figures released by the Office of National Statistics in December 2013 show the median gross weekly pay to be:

• Hull: Men £497. Women £410. About a 17.5% gap.
• East Riding: Men £513. Women £370. About a 28.9% gap.

Claire is calling for:

• All employers in the area to look at what they can do to close the gender pay gap.
• Companies and organisations employing more than 250 people to publish what the average pay of men and women working for them is on a regular basis.
• Those employers that achieve equal pay to spread best practice and demonstrate that it can be achieved.

The Liberal Democrats believe that women should have the same opportunities as their male colleagues in the workplace and should be rewarded accordingly.