Healy, Geraldine and Ahamed, M. Mostak (2018) Gender pay gap, voluntary interventions and recession: the case of the British financial services sector. British Journal of Industrial Relations. ISSN 1467-8543 (Accepted)

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Abstract

State institutions and trade unions put pressure on the British financial services sector to reform its gendered practices and reduce its gender pay gap following both the recession and the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) Inquiry (2009). This article considers the effect of these pressures by comparing the gender pay gap pre-, during- and post-recession periods. Using Labour Force Survey data, the article finds a marginal pay gap reduction in the post-recession period, a reduction that was greater in financial services than in the rest of the economy. However the financial services pay gap remained resilient and substantially higher at the top of the earnings distribution. Union membership and collective bargaining were shown to reduce the pay gap including for women members with children. In contrast, countervailing factors, including ethnicity and post-recession longer working hours, contributed to the pay gap. The study reveals the limitations of voluntary interventions against a resilient gendered culture.

Item Type:	Article
Keywords:	Gender Pay Gap; Recession; Intervention; Financial Services Sector
Schools and Departments:	School of Business, Management and Economics > Business and Management
Research Centres and Groups:	Business and Finance Research Group
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labour H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labour > HD0028 Management. Industrial Management > HD0058 Location of industry H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labour > HD0028 Management. Industrial Management > HD0059 Public relations. Industrial publicity H Social Sciences > HG Finance H Social Sciences > HG Finance > HG1501 Banking > HG2397 By region or country
Depositing User:	M. Mostak Ahamed
Date Deposited:	02 Jan 2019 15:25
Last Modified:	02 Jan 2019 16:29
URI:	http://srodev.sussex.ac.uk/id/eprint/81021

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