Government condemned over pay gap backdown

The TUC has condemned the government’s Department for Business and Trade for rejecting calls to make ethnicity pay gap reporting mandatory, describing the announcement in July as “a huge let down” for BAME workers.

The union body’s general secretary, Paul Nowak, said ministers had backed away from previous pledges to address structural racism at work, which plays “a big role in determining Black workers’ pay and career prospects”.

The department’s decision was revealed in a response last month to consultation that ended in January 2019. While its report acknowledged that ethnicity pay reporting can be a “valuable tool” for businesses, it said it may not be “the most appropriate mechanism for every ... employer”.

“We do not believe now is the right time to take forward a mandatory approach to ethnicity pay reporting,” the report said. “It is clear that a single reporting model may not work for all employers and that a ‘one size fits all’ approach to action planning will not be appropriate in all circumstances.”

The government earlier reversed a 2022 commitment to make reporting mandatory when it published voluntary guidance for employers in April this year.

“Once again they’ve backed down on their promises,” said Nowak of the latest announcement.

The government's decision was also criticised by the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development, while Business in the Community’s race director Sandra Kerr called it “disappointing”.