Women paid less than male colleagues in similar jobs

New research from Next Steps shows that women of your generation earn less than men in the same types of jobs, even when they have similar levels of education and work experience. 

What we asked you 

In the Age 32 Survey, we asked you about your employment, home and family life, as well as about job quality factors like work stress, job satisfaction, chances for career advancement, and job security. Researchers compared the hourly pay of men and women, while considering their individual and job characteristics. 

What the researchers found 

Pay differences 

The UCL researchers found that on average women without children earned 9% less than men without children. This was true when comparing men and women with similar individual characteristics such as family background, educational qualifications and work experience, as well as job characteristics, including occupation, hours worked and contract type. 

This pay gap was even wider for mothers, who earned on average 16% less than men without children. On the other hand, fathers and men without children were on similar pay. 

Job quality 

The researchers found that women, especially those without children, were more likely than men to find their jobs always or often stressful, and were were equally likely to be satisfied with their roles. This suggests that women are not sacrificing pay for less stressful and more fulfilling jobs. 

Despite the differences in pay, most people were happy with their jobs. Over 80% of workers were satisfied or very satisfied with their jobs, over 90% felt they were doing useful work, and over 65% agreed their employers motivated them to give their best performance. 

Why this research is important 

The information you’ve shared about your lives has generated important new evidence on pay inequalities between men and women between parents and non-parents. 

Lead author Dr Bozena Wielgoszewska, said: “Mothers’ work opportunities are often limited by a lack of good quality and flexible work, and affordable childcare. Whether the new government’s funded childcare initiative will help remains to be seen. Ensuring mothers have access to good quality part-time work opportunities, with potential for wage progression and career advancement should be explored as part of the government’s new ‘make work pay’ agenda”  

“It is imperative that policymakers do as much as they can to strengthen equal opportunity structures for men and women, including mothers and fathers, to ensure people are able to make the best decisions about work for themselves and their families.”   

Read the full research report here 

Women’s pay penalty and job quality: initial findings from Next Steps at age 32, by Bozena Wielgoszewska, Alex Bryson, Claire Crawford and Heather Joshi is available on the CLS website.