Gender Pay Gap report 2023
11 December 2023
This is the gender pay gap report of the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) - the regulatory body for solicitors in England and Wales. This report covers the statutory gender pay reporting up to April 2023.
The gender pay gap is defined as the difference between the mean or median hourly pay rate that female and male staff receive.
The mean pay gap is the difference between hourly earnings for female and male staff, taking the sum of all hourly rates divided by the total number of female or male staff.
The median pay gap is the difference between the midpoints in the ranges of hourly earnings between female and male staff. It takes all salaries in order from lowest to highest and picks the middle-most salary.
The figures in the charts below are based on hourly rates of pay during the monthly pay period ending on 25 April 2023 and bonuses paid in the year up to 5 April 2023. The figures are compared to our 2022 and 2021 Gender Pay Gap Report.
Difference in pay between females and males
| 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | +/- percentage point change 2022-23 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean pay gap | 9.7% | 13.4% | 11.8% | -1.6% |
| Median pay gap | 9.3% | 11.2% | 9.3% | -1.9% |
The 2022 mean and median gender pay gap increased compared to 2021.
Difference in bonus pay between females and males
| 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | +/- percentage point change 2022-23 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean bonus gap | 24.2% | 25.6% | 39.3% | +13.7% |
| Median bonus gap | -14.3% | 12.5% | 20% | +7.5% |
Between 2022 and 2023 we saw an increase in both the mean and median bonuses of males compared to females.
There are various bonus schemes for different levels throughout the SRA.
The charts show the gender split when we divide our workforce by ordering hourly rates of pay from highest to lowest and grouping the pay into four equal quartiles.
Approximately 63 percent of our workforce is female and, as the 2023 pay quartile chart demonstrates, females continue to be well represented across all pay quartiles.
Understanding the gap
Our 2023 median pay gap is 9.3 percent, which is again lower than the current UK median pay gap of 14.3 percent (Office of National Statistics 2023).
Our gender pay gap has reduced this year, predominately due to the change in males and females at the more senior levels.
What we've achieved on gender pay
We are encouraged that our gender pay gap has narrowed this year, and we remain committed to continuing to reduce the gender pay gap.
Below is a summary of some of the ongoing measures in place to address the gender pay gap:
- Expanding our learning and development programmes
- review of our policies, processes and practices to ensure an environment where everyone can flourish
- Continue to analyse diversity data in support of ensuring fairness throughout the employment lifecycle.
We continue to be committed to a fully inclusive workplace.
The further work that we set out in our ethnicity pay gap continues, and more detail can be found in our separate workforce senior ethnicity inclusion action plan such as focusing on career development and reviewing our recruitment practices, will also be used to address the gender pay gap.
As required by the regulation, we confirm the data in this report is accurate.