Gender pay gap closing but men still earn more

Roseanna Cunningham. Picture: Julie Bull

While there remains a 7.3 per cent differnce between the pay of men and women in Scotland, the figure compares favourably with England (10 per cent) and Wales (7.8 per cent). The figure for the UK as a whole is 9.4 per cent.

Fair Work Secretary Roseanna Cunningham said: “This is very welcome news and demonstrates the progress Scotland is making in closing the gender pay gap, particularly when compared to the rest of the UK.

“The narrowing of the gap in Scotland has also played a significant part in the overall UK improvement.”

Ms Cunningham said the number of women in work in Scotland is “also at record levels” as she stressed: “While the gender pay gap is lower than the rest of the UK, we realise there is more work to do.

“The pay gap is still too wide and while we have more women in work, they are much more likely to be in lower-paid work, often without the stability and assurance that their job is secure.”

The latest figures from the ONS’ Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2015 also showed that the median annual salary in Scotland for those working in the public sector is £25,000, while the figure for the private sector is £21,100.

The figures have risen by 2.6 per cent and 4.2 per cent respectively in the past year.

Earlier this year, figures from the independent think-tank Fiscal Affairs Scotland showed the gap between men in women was widening in Scotland, despite closing elsewhere in the UK.

The think-tank said there had been a rise in the difference between male and female salaries north of the Border since 2011. Separate research by the Law Society of Scotland found male solicitors earn as much as 42 per cent more than their female counterparts.