South Tyneside Council reports 17 percent average gender pay gap

South Shields MP Emma Lewell-Buck has criticised South Tyneside Council after new figures revealed a gender pay gap three times larger than the average of other North East councils.

Women working at South Tyneside Council are reported to be paid a average hourly rate of 16.9 per cent less than their male counterparts, recent government data shows.

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A spokesperson for South Tyneside Council suggested the difference can be explained by the “requirements” of roles, and what type of job would be more likely to "attract" men or women.

The spokesperson said: "The Council is an equal pay employer. The gender pay gap data highlights the difference between the average pay of men and women; it is not a measure of equal pay, which relates to what men and women are paid for the same roles or work of similar or equal value.

"Roles within these areas are very different in terms of requirements and hours of work and certain roles have, historically, seen a gender bias. 

“Roles in areas such as refuse collection, ICT and construction services have tended to attract more men, whereas roles in areas such as social care, customer services, catering and cleaning have tended to attract more women, especially in areas where a high proportion of roles are part time.”

Emma Lewell-Buck, Labour MP for South Shields has said she is “shocked” by the statistics, adding it was "out of order" women working for the local authority in her consituency were subject to economic inequality.

She said: “It’s disingenuous to suggest that women are going for lower paid jobs. It’s not right of the council to pay people unfairly, then blame it on them for the types of jobs they are seeking.

“To find out that a lot of women working in our local authority, in my constituency are subject to this economic inequality is out of order.”

Claire Reindorp, CEO at Young Women’s Trust, a charity that fights for economic justice, was also critical of the council's response.

She told The Northern Echo: “Right from the start of their working lives young women earn a fifth less than young men. They often find themselves in roles and sectors which are poorly paid because it is seen as ‘women’s work’.

"They’re also expected to do more unpaid labour, including childcare, which means that many women can’t work full-time. And then we know they are less likely to be promoted. There really is a broken rung on the career ladder for young women."

She added: "It’s great that some employers are recognising this gap and taking action to reducing it – we absolutely need more flexible working and salary transparency at the very least. But we have to start by recognising the issue and accepting that we have a huge talent pool that needs supporting rather than being held back.”

Councils across the North East reported an average 5.5% average pay gap between men and women in the year 2021/22, with South Tyneside Council reporting the largest difference.

Redcar and Cleveland was the only council to seemingly pay women more than men, while the gap at Northumberland County Council was 1.4%.

The two other largest gaps saw North Tyneside Council workers experiencing an 8.4% difference, as Sunderland workers see a pay gap of 9.2%.

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Jon Ritchie, Director of Resources at North Tyneside Council, said: “As an organisation we strive to ensure that everyone is paid fairly for their roles and while our ambition is to eliminate the gender pay gap, we know that systemic and cultural change takes time.

“We are pleased to see a reduction in the pay gap this year, but we recognise that no pay gap is acceptable and have a robust action plan in place to try to reduce this.”

The Northern Echo also approached Sunderland City Council for comment on their above average pay gap but did not recieve a response.