Scots slow to reveal gender pay gap

FEWER than 40 Scottish firms have revealed the difference between what they pay men and women as the legal deadline looms.

New legislation demands firms with more than 250 staff have to report the hourly rate and bonuses paid to men and women.

However, just 33 of the 527 firms which have revealed the information so far have been Scottish with three months to go before the April 6 deadline.

So far, Clydesdale Bank has the largest difference between men and women’s pay of all the Scots firms, with men being paid on average 37% more than women.

The firm said: “We are confident that performance is not gender-biased and where pay gaps exist they are not driven by gender. Our gender pay gap is largely driven by the fact that we have more men than women in senior roles.”

Energy firm SSE paid men 33% more than women on average, while TSB Bank reported male employees were paid 31% more.

Drinks firm Diageo’s Scottish operation, based in Edinburgh, is also paying men 11% more than women, however their UK company has a smaller gap of just 4%.

Meanwhile, nine Scots firms reported they have no gender pay gap or pay women more than men.

The Donaldson Trust, which runs Donaldson’s school for deaf children in Linlithgow, pays women the most in comparison to men out of all 33 firms, with female staff earning around 6% more than male colleagues.

Alison Thewliss, SNP MP, said there was “no excuse” for gender pay gaps, and added: “It’s shocking that there is such a significant gap in high performing industries like energy and finance.

“It’s clear that across all sectors, more action needs to be taken to close this.”