Diageo Scotland's gender pay gap widens

Drinks giant Diageo has reported a widening gender pay gap in its Scottish operations, despite an improvement in the company overall.

Diageo cited falling numbers of women opting for shift work as a key contributor to the pay gap in Scotland. Picture: Diageo

Scotland’s biggest whisky distiller, whose brands include Johnnie Walker, Smirnoff and Guinness, revealed a median pay gap of 5.4 per cent in its second annual gender pay gap report, a reduction from 8.6 per cent in the previous year.

However, in Diageo Scotland, the company’s manufacturing arm, the median pay gap rose from 16.7 per cent in 2017 to a current level of 18 per cent.

Diageo blamed a reduction in the number of women opting for shift allowances for unsocial hours and a trend of manufacturing roles being filled by men, but stressed that it recruited more women than men into entry roles this year.

It also announced the creation of two new scholarships in partnership with Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, which aim to encourage more female students into Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) careers.

Chief human resources officer Mairéad Nayager said: “We aim to be the best employer for women in the UK and are actively working to ensure we have a strong pipeline of female talent, across the broad variety of roles in our business.

“While there is more work to do, we are proud that our work on inclusion and diversity is making Diageo a stronger company and I am pleased with the progress we have made this year towards closing the gender pay gap across our combined businesses in Great Britain and Scotland.”