The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has reported the results of City Hall's latest pay audit, which found the equivalent of a 4.6% gender pay gap.
Female City Hall employees on full-time contracts earned £21.40 an hour on average at the end of March 2016, while male staff took home £22.44 an hour an average.
The audit figures are calculated according to the median average. The figures do not show differences in pay between men and women performing equal work.
The audit also found that 41% of senior staff earning £60,000 or more are women, and women make up 29% of employees who earn over £100,000. More than half (52%) of City Hall's employees are women.
Khan has put a number of plans in place at City Hall to increase the number of women in senior positions. These include increasing part-time and flexible-working options and aiding career progression within those positions. Further measures include mentoring, career support programmes, sponsorship for qualifications, and a pilot recruitment programme where names are not included on application forms.
The Mayor of London has also instructed other Greater London Authority bodies, such as Transport for London, the Metropolitan Police and the London Fire Brigade, to conduct their own gender pay audits and follow up plans to help narrow any gaps between wages.
Khan said: “I have vowed to be a proud feminist at City Hall, and I am determined to make the Greater London Authority a model employer that removes any barriers to women adopting the highest possible standards for fair pay, good working conditions and gender equality.
“These figures show that, while City Hall compares favourably with the London average for employers, much more needs to be done to get our own house in order. There is an unacceptable pay gap between men and women at City Hall, caused by not having enough women in senior roles. I am determined to address this, and have tasked my officials to bring forward an urgent plan to do so.
“It is unacceptable that in London, one of the world’s greatest and most progressive cities, someone’s pay and career prospects can still be defined by their gender. I challenge both ourselves and others to take action to break the glass ceiling that still exists to limit their success.”
