Equal Pay Day: Our Flagship Campaign

There's no question that women's work is worth the same as men's. But we still haven't closed the gender pay gap.

Equal Pay Day, the day of the year when women stop earning relative to men due to the gender pay gap, is Fawcett's flagship campaign. 

There are so many factors at play when it comes to the gender pay gap. Each year on Equal Pay Day, Fawcett's campaigning has focused on a different contributing factor to the gap, producing research and resources to help close it once and for all.

Explore what causes the gender pay gap, and our calls for change over years of research and campaigning below.

Together, we can close the gender pay gap for good. Become a Fawcett member and join our calls for change.

2023: Unlocking flexible work

This year on Equal Pay Day, we published new data that shows why making flexible work the default in high-quality, well-paid jobs is essential to closing the gender pay gap more quickly, as well as an updated explainer about how and why the gender pay gap persists.

Our data shows that women are accessing flexible work associated with lower-paid, lower-quality work e.g. part-time, insecure work and zero-hours contracts, in order to balance their caring responsibilities, and that this contributes to the UK's pernicious gender pay gap. 

40% of women who aren't currently working said that access to flexible work would mean they could take on more paid work (32% of men who aren't working and 37% of people overall said the same), and 77% of women agreed that they would be more likely to apply for a job that advertises flexible working options.

It's time to make flexible work the default:

2022: Women's Missing Money

On EPD 2022, we revealed the double trouble women in the UK are facing due to the combined impact of the cost-of-living crisis and the gender pay gap. In 2022, women, on average, took home £564 less than men each month.

When we asked women what they would do with that extra money, more than half (53%) said they would use it to turn on their heating and lights more often, and 48% said their mental health would improve.

The cost-of-living + gender pay gap double trouble:

2021: End Salary History

Asking new recruits what they were paid in previous jobs as part of salary negotiation is a business practice that bakes in inequality. 

Our EPD 2021 briefing on ending salary history shows that in the US, where 21 states have banned the practice, the gender and ethnicity pay gaps have started to narrow.

#EndSalaryHistory is a grassroots campaign originated by Fawcett East London (FEL), part of the Fawcett local groups network, sparked by conversations about how the practice had affected women's ability to negotiate better pay. Since then, FEL have received 100 pledges from businesses across the UK to ban the practice.

Inequality in your past should not determine your future:

2020: The Coronavirus Crossroads 

Our Equal Pay Day research in 2020 showed the UK at a pivotal moment for equality in the workplace and equal pay for women. 

Our research showed that, while we risked turning progress back, the adjustments we made in the way we work during the pandemic demonstrated that rapid change is possible. But it only happens when Government takes necessary action.

Our fears and hopes for women in the workplace post-2020:

It's time to close the gender pay gap.

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Author: Lucy Ballantyne

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