Realist, not conformist analysis of the latest financial, business and political news

This Gender Pay Gap Is Extremely Worrying

I’m a lot more worried about this gender pay gap than you are. Considerably more so – and that’s even if you’re one of the women complaining about it. For we’re in the middle of a collective delusion, people simply not willing to even try and understand what is going on:

Women who work for HSBC in the UK are paid 60pc less on average than men, the banking giant has disclosed.

The gender pay gap is one of the largest yet reported in Britain and will pile more pressure on firms to address pay disparities and to hire more women into senior roles.

HSBC said the size of its gap reflected the fact there were fewer women in leadership roles at the bank. Women make up more than half of HSBC’s UK workforce – 54pc – yet less than a quarter of its senior roles, at 23pc.

The bank’s report on its gender pay gap also shows an 86pc gap between average bonuses paid to women and men. The mean gender pay gap between women and men was 59pc last year, rising to 60pc as of February this year.

Note what is not being said there. That men and women are being paid different amounts to do the same job. This is more generally true of the companies which are reporting, as they legally must, those gaps. An airline has more male pilots than female, more female stewards than male, pilots are paid what pilots get, stewards what stewards. That produces, in raw figures of average male and female pay, a pay gap – but it’s not one of corporate discrimination. It’s that men and women are, for one or another reason, sorting into different jobs.

Add in those career breaks leading to fewer women in senior positions where the pay is higher and that’s what’s causing it all.

And then to what worries. I’ve had conversations with two comment page editors this week about pieces on the subject. Sure, I didn’t get hired and there’s nothing new in that. But one of them said that while he got the point and was interested that wasn’t how the general feeling within the organisation was. The institutional view was that this was a scandal, outrageous, and something must be done. The other paper was even more worrying – a flat insistence that this was different pay for the same job driving the result.

And both of those are a problem, no?

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ian parkinson
ian parkinson
6 years ago

Was one of those the FT? They have truly lost the plot. In discussing the Uber study showing that men earned 7% more they explained that 2% was due to speed and 5% due to driving at anti-social hours. ok, useful journalism. Then the commentary: – should men be encouraged to drive so dangerously fast? (30.6 mph vs 30) – what is wrong with society that women are forced to choose between driving at less well paid times and feeling safe – i.e. it should be the same rate to drive an old lady to the shops at 3pm as… Read more »

jgh
jgh
6 years ago

So…….. ban women from taking time off work? The sole reason for women doing the same jobs as men in the same position is solely that the women – on average – having put in fewer overall hours than – on average – the men.

Van_Patten
Van_Patten
6 years ago

The Witchfinders have got their teeth into this and the end result will be illustrative of the law of unforeseen consequences – that much is certain. There most certainly is a sense of collective delusion in the UK but I think that has been the case for over 20 years, certainly since the election of Blair and the death of Princess Diana – this is another symptom of the impact of an extreme left stranglehold on all areas of the education system which dates back probably nearly six decades

Spike
6 years ago

Mandatory reporting is a “mild” alternative to regulation and prohibition – until gadflies sift through the numbers looking for anomalies, which they publish without this necessary analysis. This is why Hillary demanded Trump’s tax returns (“We don’t know what he might be hiding!”) and her proxy Mueller has now subpoena’ed his business organization. New scandal every night, agenda derailed.

jgh
jgh
6 years ago

They were reporting on it on the radio half an a hour ago. The general concensus was “we must have moar flexible working”. But, if people take advantage of flexible working, they are working *less*, so the more flexible working the more *less* working, the more further behind their peers who *don’t* flexible-work they will be. A 40-year-old with twice as much flexible working will be TWENTY YEARS behind her peers instead of just the ten years behind she is currently.

BniC
BniC
6 years ago

maybe this is why it’s good we don’t have a mining industry anymore, it’s gender earnings gap would have been terrible. As mentioned previously on this subject by others isn’t the more important question who spends the money. If we consider families (something else lefties seem to want gone) then does it matter which gender is earning the money and in what ratio. They are operating as an single economic unit with pooled earnings. It’s entirerly possible that eventually more men will take paternity leave that is on offer and the division of family labour will change (it has over… Read more »

So Much For Subtlety
So Much For Subtlety
6 years ago
Reply to  BniC

Unless of course biology has anything to do with mate selection. If it does women are unlikely to be impressed by men who take time off work to look after the children. So it may happen but society will collapse if it does.

After all, I can’t help but notice divorce and marital unhappiness were uncommon in your father’s generation. They are very common in your generation. I expect they will be glowing hot nuclear waste in your son’s.

Spike
6 years ago

Society will evolve new institutions when one-time “hookups” become the norm and no one is sure who should be on top.

john 77
john 77
6 years ago
Reply to  BniC

@ BniC
Why it’s good that we don’t have a mining industry any more is that it means the younger generation will not end up on “light duties” above ground and die youngish of silicosis.
When Harriet Harperson starts demanding an end to the gender silicosis gap, I’ll start listening.

Spike
6 years ago
Reply to  john 77

Likewise, though the US doesn’t draft soldiers, mandatory registration with the “Selective Service” is still on the books. The occasional call for our daughters to be forced to register really separates the men from the boys, as it were.

James in NZ
James in NZ
6 years ago

There is a simple way of solving the gender pay gap; force all adults to work exactly 40 hours a week with no maternity leave, no flexibility and with jobs allocated to you by the State.

They could even sift people into five different groups; Alphas (the liberal elite who know what is best for you), Betas, Gammas, Deltas and Epsilons. By ensuring an equal gender distribution in each caste we can bring forth a Brave New World where every gender earns the same.

Hector Drummond, Vile Novelist

Like everything other current issue at the moment, the ruling class have just decided to get the bit between their teeth and lie about this.

It’s working.

BniC
BniC
6 years ago

It’s the old issue that solving the problemmeans you make no more money so need to perpetuate the gravy train

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