Equal pay rap for bosses
Bosses in the hotel and catering industries are failing to address the 18% pay gap between men and women, according to new research from the Equal Opportunities Commission.
The research found employers "shockingly complacent" about the fact that women are far less likely to receive bonuses or performance-related pay than men.
Analysis of the service sector - which included jobs in the hotel and catering industries - found that more than 90% of employers questioned were confident that their payment schemes were free of bias. Yet few had carried out any research to see if their confidence was justified.
A commission spokeswoman said professional, technical and manual jobs traditionally carried out by men were considered to be of greater value than woman-dominated support and administrative jobs. "It's essential that all employers address the issue of how jobs are valued," she said.
Employers reported that up to 12% of part-time workers did not have access to an occupational pension scheme, although it has been illegal to exclude part-timers from schemes open to full-time workers since 1995.
