Finance Monthly September 2019 Edition

31 www.finance-monthly.com WOMEN IN FINANCE - GENDER PAY GAP s a woman who works in finance, the gender pay gap within the industry is an issue I’m extremely passionate about. Not just because it affects me, but because it affectssomanypeopleacross the globe. My passion for the subject has led me to give many speeches, publicly and privately. However, it’s important to highlight that I’m not a spokesperson for women in finance. No one is. Little annoys me more than people turning to me, or any other individual, when they need ‘a woman’s view’. No individual speaks for all women - and that’s sort of the point. Women aren’t a collective group of one type of human. 50% of the population are not categorically better at planning, organising, intuition, empathy, listening and creativity than the other 50%. There’s a scale, and everyone is different. Diversity is a very personal subject, and it’s wider than gender, but that’s not for now. It’s built by each individual based on their beliefs, culture and upbringing. But a change in mindset on the subject of diversity can’t be done individually, it has to be a cultural shift. We all have to get on board. So why should you get on board? First, to run the best company, you’re going to need a mix of everyone. Diversity in all areas of a hierarchy is good for business. The Journal of Economics and Management strategy found that shifting from an all-male or all-female workforce to one that is evenly split can increase revenue by 40%. Further, according to McKinsey, women make up to 80% of consumers. That means, making decisions without women in your workforce means you’re making decisions about up to 80% of consumers without consulting with any of the 80%. Basically, diversity within the workplace is important. It’s important to have a mix of decision- makers at your company. In order to achieve a diverse workplace, you must pay people at the same level the same amount. In fact, writing that, I cannot believe we’re still having this debate. The fact that there is a gender pay gap could indicate that a woman’s contribution is not equal to that of a man’s contribution. Something decided by someone else about a collective group of people. That in itself can’t be right. Companies shouldn’t pay their staff what they can get away with, they should pay their staff what they deserve within the realms of what the company can afford. And that spans further than gender, of course, but we can’t cover everything in one go. Two people at the same level making the same contribution to the company, one male, one female, how much should you pay them? The same amount. Despite the active effort from the UK Government in helping women secure senior positions and secure equal pay, the male to female balance remains low. Two years ago the government introduced a law that makes it mandatory for businesses to disclose the discrepancies in salary each gender receives. You’ll recall the BBC were heavily involved in this. But they were not alone. A recent report by The Centre of Economics and Business Research revealed that female workers in finance earn 26.3% less than male workers, an increase on last year’s 25.7%. This statistic contradicts the claim that women now fill 32% of boardroom positions. In the finance industry, women who work in the same positions as their male colleagues are often paid less without knowing and are given fewer opportunities to progress in their career to senior leadership roles. A Companies shouldn’t pay their staff what they can get away with, they should pay their staff what they deserve within the realms of what the company can afford. “ “