Charity organisation Unicef has reported a mean ethnicity pay gap of 9.4% for 2025, down from 12% in 2024.
The employer’s median ethnicity pay gap for 2025 was 8.7%, down from 12.2% in 2024. It has largely attributed this to a lower representation of global majority, or non-white, employees in higher-paid roles.
Unicef’s mean gender pay gap for 2025 was 3.7%, up from 0.3% in 2024. Its median gender pay gap for 2025 was -0.6%, compared to 0.1% in 2024. Its lowest pay quartile comprises 74.7% female and 25.3% male employees, while its highest pay quartile is 78.4% female and 21.6% male.
The organisation’s median disability pay gap for 2025 was 5.8%, down from 10.1% in 2024. A total of 11% of its workforce declared having a disability in 2025, compared to 9.7% in 2024.
Its mean LGBTQIA+ pay gap for 2025 was 13.3%, down from 16.6% in 2024, while its median was 10.3%, down from 12.6% the year prior. A total of 86.8% declared their sexual orientation and gender identity data in 2025, compared to 79.2% in 2024.
Unicef has also published its socio-economic background pay gap for the first time. Its mean socio-economic pay gap was 2.1%, and the median stood at 0.5%.
Martyn Dicker, director of people at Unicef, said: “Our focus for 2026 is about deepening impact, increasing consistency, and continuing to embed EDI [equity, diversity and inclusion] into the way we work every day. We believe one benefit of this will be continuing the pattern of further reductions in these pay gaps in future years. We have made meaningful progress but remain committed to systemic change and moving further to becoming a more equitable organisation.
“Equity, diversity and inclusion are fundamental to achieving Unicef UK’s vision of a better world for every child. We are here for all children without discrimination, to protect and uphold their rights. And we mirror that ethos in our ways of working, our culture and our ambition.”
