Gender pay gap reflects badly on legal profession

High Court, Edinburgh. Picture: Julie Bull

If 42 is the answer, what’s the question? It may surprise some to find that it’s not to do with the meaning of life, the universe, and everything, as author Douglas Adams would have it in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – the 42 in my answer is the response to ‘what’s the widest percentage point of the gender pay gap in Scotland’s solicitor profession?’

It’s the equivalent of some female solicitors working for free until the end of the year.

Of course we are aware that there are many and nuanced reasons why the gender pay gap exists, and the legal profession is certainly not alone – figures from November 2014 show that the overall UK gap across all sectors was 9.4 per cent.

However, disappointingly, we have seen little change in the past decade compared to other professions such as accountancy or dentistry. Such a significant pay gap between male and female solicitors reflects badly on what is otherwise a modern and forward thinking profession. This is something we can’t afford to ignore, either for ethical or business reasons.

We want individual solicitors and the businesses where they work to be able to thrive.Women now represent half the legal profession in Scotland and, just as for their male colleagues, there should be no limit set on their talent and ambition.

I am therefore encouraged by the strong support from the profession for the Society to tackle this issue and to drive change. That is why we introduced ten new equality standards this year and created an ‘equality toolkit’ designed to help employers assess if there is a gender pay gap, the extent of that gap, and how they can work to reduce it.

The equality standards, which are relevant to any size of business, require law firms and in-house legal teams to implement and report on an equality strategy with measurable targets. They also require organisations to provide equality training; publish statements on the composition of roles and on equal pay; and for larger organisations, with 150 or more employees, to publish gender pay gaps for full time and part-time staff.

All employers have legal responsibilities in relation to equality and it has been good to see that in the time since the Society introduced its new standards, the UK Government has passed legislation that will require larger employers in any sector or industry to publish gender pay gap figures.

There are also commercial considerations. For example, many government and other organisations sourcing legal services also include equality criteria as part of their tendering processes. If law firms are not taking steps to ensure that they are meeting these, they could be adversely affected.

Law Society research has shown the average gender pay gap within Scotland’s legal profession ranges from 2 per cent to 38 per cent at specific career stages. We know there is very little difference between male and female solicitors’ earnings in the early stages of their careers, however from age 36 onwards, women generally appear to be paid lower salaries than men of the same age, both in private practice law firms and in-house legal teams. The research findings have also shown that women tend to remain associates or assistants rather than be promoted to partner level.

While the findings suggest there is very little direct discrimination in terms of women being paid less for directly equivalent roles and experience, there appears to be an issue around assumptions made about women, with the report indicating that women earn less than their male counterparts whether or not they have children.

With increasing numbers of women entering the legal profession, it is essential we continue in our efforts to reduce the gender pay gap and to monitor this generation of solicitors as they progress in their careers to see if the pay gap remains or is reduced.

There is no easy solution but by publishing gender pay gap figures and making them a discussion point, this will empower people to ask questions and stimulate further change – and that in another decade we will not see such a significant pay gap between male and female solicitors.

• Janet Hood is convener of the Law Society of Scotland’s equality and diversity committee. For details of the Law Society’s equality work, see: www.lawscot.org.uk/about-us/equality-and-diversity/framework-for-success/