British Values: Equal Pay in the Hospitality Industry as of 2023

European Equal Pay Day, celebrated on 15th November, symbolises the ongoing global push for equal pay for work of equal value, especially against women and girls. However, still in 2023, the hospitality industry presents a complex scenario regarding pay equality. 

Women in Hospitality, Travel & Leisure (WiHTL), a community committed to enhancing diversity and inclusion in the Hospitality, Travel, and Leisure (HTL) sector, partnered with PwC UK to release the Gender Pay Gap Report for 2023. 

Among the three HTL sectors, travel has the highest gender pay gap, increasing from 20.4% to 22.4% over the past year. Hospitality, while relatively low compared to the broader market, has seen an increase from 4.2% to 5.2%. Encouragingly, the leisure sector reports a decrease in its gender pay gap, dropping from 8.3% to 6.7%. These statistics show the challenges faced by the HTL industry, indicating substantial work is needed to bridge the gender pay gap.  

The report also highlights the long-term impact of the pandemic and the current cost-of-living crisis on the hospitality sector. Inflationary pressures have led to rising costs and customer uncertainties. Organisations have therefore adjusted pay structures, which may have inadvertently affected the gender pay gap. These could be higher hourly pay and bonus adjustments which potentially increase the gap, especially considering that senior roles, often held by men, receive substantial bonuses. 

Katy Bennett, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Consulting Director at PwC, highlights the need for companies to adopt a holistic approach to pay gap reporting. She emphasises that it's insufficient to rely solely on the gender pay gap metric, as it may not capture the full story of fairness within an organisation. Companies are now embracing the reporting of other pay gap metrics, including ethnicity. 

In conclusion, achieving equal pay is a pivotal milestone for human rights and gender equality. The hospitality industry faces challenges in closing the gender pay gap, but it must persist in its efforts to ensure equal pay for equal work becomes a reality in 2024 and beyond.  

If you’d like to download the report head over to https://www.wihtl.com/