NHS Providers, in collaboration with leading healthcare law
firm Hempsons, has published a comprehensive guide for NHS trust
leaders on how to understand and tackle the ethnicity pay
gap.
‘Counting the cost:
Understanding your ethnicity pay gap' has been designed
to help NHS leaders understand and address ethnicity pay gaps in
a meaningful way. The guide explains legal frameworks; how to
improve data to better recognise and tackle ethnicity pay gaps;
and practical strategies to help minimise this form of
inequality.
26% of NHS staff
belong to an ethnic minority. Yet, our guide shows that only
11% of staff in band 9, at the top of the NHS pay framework are
from an ethnic minority, compared with 23% in band 2, the lowest
band.
The guide from NHS Providers and Hempsons is published one year
after NHS England's first Equality, Diversity and
Inclusion Improvement Plan, which called on NHS organisations
to understand pay gaps by protected characteristic and put in
place an improvement plan. This will be tracked and monitored by
NHS boards across gender (by 2024), disability (by 2025), and
other protected characteristics (by 2026).
The guide includes examples from organisations whose boards have
begun to implement strategies to address their pay gaps,
including the use of ‘future Very Senior Manager' (VSM)
programmes to support progression into senior roles, taskforces
designed to tackle racism in the workplace with clear executive
leadership, and talent management frameworks to ensure all staff
have opportunities to explore their aspirations and career
development.
Chapter themes in the guide include:
-
Legal framework and risk: explaining the legal
framework on the ethnicity pay gap, the risks associated with
not tackling pay inequality, and legal obligations for NHS
leaders.
-
Understanding data: outlining the importance
of breaking down data and taking an intersectional approach to
data analysis to support identification of the underlying
causes of the ethnicity pay gap.
-
Role of boards: including the role boards need
to play in driving trust activity to eliminate the ethnicity
pay gap and introducing robust governance systems and processes
-
Strategies for closing the gap: including
leadership and talent management initiatives, robust
recruitment processes and regular reporting to embed
accountability.
The guide includes a list of practical questions organisations
can use to interrogate their own practices, and better understand
the ethnicity pay gap within their institution. Case studies
include those provided by Cambridgeshire County Council,
Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, and Barts Health NHS
Trust.
Saffron Cordery, deputy chief executive at NHS Providers
said:
“We know that the legal frameworks surrounding the ethnicity pay
gap are shifting, but the issue itself is long-standing. This is
why our guide outlining the impact of the ethnicity pay gap and
practical strategies to address it is crucial.
“The NHS is made stronger through its diversity. Taking a
person-centred approach is vital when tackling the ethnicity pay
gap, as the issues are rooted in multiple interconnected factors
including systemic racism and inequalities in recruitment, entry
and progression. Our guide aims to maintain momentum on this
issue and bolster the efforts of NHS organisations across
England. Whilst tackling the pay gap is only one piece of the
puzzle when it comes to creating fair and inclusive workplaces,
it is an urgent priority.
“We hope this new report will provide helpful, practical guidance
on interventions designed to eliminate the ethnicity pay gap
based on learning from both within and beyond the NHS.”
Andrew Davison, head of employment
at Hempsons said:
“Hempsons is pleased to provide our expertise to support this
important new guidance, drawing on our experience in employment
law. We hope that this guidance will go some way towards
supporting the NHS to keep working towards its goal of inclusive
and equitable workplace pay.”
The guidance's foreword is provided by Dianne Greyson, founder of
the #EthnicityPayGap campaign. Her insights underscore the
necessity of addressing the ethnicity pay gap as part of NHS
trusts' wider work to tackle racism. In the foreword, Dianne
writes: “improvement on any identified disparities will require
you to apply a holistic view that puts your people at the centre
of your future endeavours. That will mean looking at your talent
pipeline, reviewing your recruitment policies & procedures,
and ensuring your external providers are fully supporting your
actions.”
Ends
Notes to editors:
- Find further information about NHS Providers Race Equality
programme here.
