Durham University admits its 25 per cent gender pay gap is ‘a serious issue’

A report released today by Durham University has revealed shocking figures in the gender pay gap faced by university employees, admitting the disparity is a "serious issue".

In an email sent to students outlining the report, Vice Chancellor Stuart Corbridge defended the current pay gap, citing the cause of the 25.35 per cent mean gap as being due to having "more men than women in higher paid roles".

Corbridge also blamed college-based roles, suggesting that these roles hire more men than women because women find these jobs less desirable due to their "unsociable hours or lone working" conditions.

Perhaps most striking of all was the revelation that the mean gender pay gap for staff bonuses is 64.29 per cent, one of the highest reported amongst UK university institutions.

The email explaining the details of the report, which can be read in its entirety below, also outlines a number of proposed steps the University is taking in an attempt to balance out these figures.

These steps include new progression and pay policies for academics, a review of pay for professional support staff, and an examination of current recruitment practices to promote diversity.

Durham’s report comes after the implementation of new rules requiring all institutions with over 250 employees to declare their gender pay gap data by 4th April this year.

Durham joins over 46 other universities who have declared their statistics so far, contributing to what is a proving to be a damning picture for gender equality within UK higher education institutions.

Pay gap statistics as revealed by seven Universities so far

Equal pay legislation has been in place in the UK since 1970. Despite this, the UCU reports that at 18 per cent, Britain still has the highest gender pay gap in the European Union.

There are still big questions being raised about the nature of equality in the workplace, with studies continuing to highlight the discrepancies in pay equality. Earlier this month the Trades Union Congress (TUC) released a report suggesting that women in the UK wait, on average, for 67 days before they get paid when compared to the average man.

Read the full email sent to students below: