Men paid almost 25% more than women at Bank of Ireland

The number of men in senior roles at Bank of Ireland has been blamed for a gender pay gap of almost 25 per cent.

Gender Pay Gap Report published by the bank on Monday highlighted the percentage difference between what men and women are paid on average in the organisation, irrespective of roles or levels.

Companies are required by law to pay women and men in the same roles the same salary. The gender pay gap is calculated by working out the average pay of all women in the company and comparing it with the average pay of all men. At Bank of Ireland, this amounted to 24.2 per cent.

While there is no sector comparison available yet in Ireland as proposed legislation has not yet been enacted, this compares with approximately 30 per cent for firms within the UK financial services sector.

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Bank of Ireland said a “significant contributor” to the gender pay gap is “imbalance at senior levels” at the bank.

In 2018, Bank of Ireland announced a target to establish a 50:50 gender balance in appointments to senior management and leadership by 2021.

On Monday, it said that 44 per cent senior of appointments last year were female, which was up from 38 per cent when the target was introduced in March 2018.

‘Taking action’

Bank of Ireland chief executive Francesca McDonagh said she was keen to close the gap as soon as possible.

“I want to progress the debate about gender diversity and that’s why Bank of Ireland is proactively reporting on the gender pay gap today,” she said. “Bank of Ireland has a gender pay gap because we have fewer women in senior roles than men.

“I’m focused on taking action to close the gap as soon as we can. That’s why we completed a comprehensive group-wide analysis of our gender data, which helps us understand the scale of the issue and allows us track our progress in a transparent and accountable way. That’s important because as we all know what gets measured gets done.

“We’re not waiting for legislation before publishing our gender pay gap in Ireland. We want to make progress on this issue, and I’d encourage other companies in Ireland to research their own position and publish their gender pay gap findings.

“Through collective action and more transparency we’ll make faster progress, and we’ll also change the culture of business in Ireland in a very positive way.”

The report also highlights a range of other actions underway across the organisation to improve the gender pay gap.

These include providing career development and leadership programmes for women to increase representation at senior levels, as well as rolling out more flexible ways of working across the organisation.

About 3,500 staff members are now working flexibly, which can include working from home or from dedicated hubs, closer to where colleagues live, cutting down time spent commuting.

The bank also announced new “family friendly” supports for staff. Anyone receiving a baby via surrogate can now take paid leave in line with maternity benefit, while those undergoing fertility treatment will receive 10 paid leave days as well as other supports.