Bank of Ireland has become the first Irish bank to publish a Gender Pay Gap Report that highlights the difference between what men and women are paid on average in the organisation, irrespective of roles or levels.
Comparing the average pay for all men and all women within the Bank of Ireland Group, the gender pay gap is 24.2pc.
While there is no sector comparison available yet in Ireland as proposed legislation has not yet been enacted, this compares with approximately 30pc for firms within the UK financial services sector where gender pay gap reporting has been in place since 2017.
“We’re not waiting for legislation before publishing our gender pay gap in Ireland. We want to make progress on this issue, and I’d encourage other companies in Ireland to research their own position and publish their gender pay gap findings”
A significant contributor to the gender pay gap is imbalance at senior levels in the Bank. For this reason, in 2018 Bank of Ireland announced a target to establish 50:50 gender balance in appointments to senior management and leadership by 2021. The Bank made 44pc senior female appointments in 2019, up from 38pc when the target was introduced in March 2018.
Call to action
“I want to progress the debate about gender diversity and that’s why Bank of Ireland is proactively reporting on the gender pay gap today,” said Group CEO Francesca McDonagh.
“Bank of Ireland has a gender pay gap because we have fewer women in senior roles than men. I’m focused on taking action to close the gap as soon as we can. That’s why we completed a comprehensive Group-wide analysis of our gender data, which helps us understand the scale of the issue and allows us track our progress in a transparent and accountable way. That’s important, because as we all know ‘what gets measured gets done’.
“We’re not waiting for legislation before publishing our gender pay gap in Ireland. We want to make progress on this issue, and I’d encourage other companies in Ireland to research their own position and publish their gender pay gap findings. Through collective action and more transparency we’ll make faster progress, and we’ll also change the culture of business in Ireland in a very positive way.”
Bank of Ireland’s Gender Pay Gap Report 2020 also highlights a range of other actions underway across the organisation to improve the gender pay gap.
These include providing career development and leadership programmes for female talent to increase representation at senior levels, and rolling out more flexible ways of working across the organisation.
Approximately 3,500 colleagues are now working flexibly, which can include working from home or from dedicated hubs, closer to where colleagues live, cutting down time spent commuting.
The Bank has also announced new ‘family friendly’ supports for colleagues. Colleagues receiving a baby via surrogate can now take paid leave in line with maternity benefit, while those conducting fertility treatment will receive 10 paid leave days and a range of supports including flexible working.
Written by John Kennedy (john.kennedy3@boi.com)
Published: 10 March, 2020
