Ikea reveals gender pay gap for UK business

Updated

Ikea has revealed the gender pay gap across its UK operation, reporting men earn more in its retail sector but women come out on top on the distribution side of the business.

The median gender pay gap is 6.9% in men's favour for retail, but 0.9% towards women in distribution.

Women make up just over half of the homeware giant's 10,000 retail staff, responsible for running stores and online sales.

However, only 17% of the 900 employees in the distribution operation, which includes logistics and transportation, are women.

The two sides of the business are registered as separate entities in the UK, according to a spokesperson. Ikea's senior management are registered under retail.

The report's authors said more men occupied senior positions in store and country management level, which falls under retail, but the reverse is true for the smaller distribution sector.

Ikea's figures are significantly lower than both the UK average (18.4%) and the average for other retail businesses (9.3%).

Both Debenhams and Argos have reported a smaller median gender pay gap for their business on the whole, however, of 0.3% and 4.2% respectively.

John Lewis reported a median gender pay gap of 7.8%.

The gender pay gap is calculated as the difference between the average salaries of men and women - it is not the same as equal pay, where firms are required to pay people doing the same job the same salary regardless of gender.

By April 4, companies and public bodies with 250 employees or more are required to have submitted their median and mean gender pay gap figures to the Government.

An estimated 9,000 employers are expected to have to submit such data, with those who miss the deadline potentially facing legal action.

Ikea's figures for the mean gender pay gap show the business in a more positive light in terms of gender equality, but both the Government and Office for National Statistics say the median figure is a more accurate measure.

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