Managing your workplace UK-wide

Gender pay gap reporting

Mandatory gender pay gap reporting for large employers and transparency obligations.

Guide summary

If you employ 250 or more people, you must calculate and publish your gender pay gap every year. Use the snapshot date of 5 April (private sector) or 31 March (public sector). Publish on your website and the government service by 4 April (private) or 30 March (public) the following year. The Equality and Human Rights Commission can take enforcement action if you do not comply.

  • Check if you have 250+ employees on the snapshot date
  • Use snapshot date: 5 April (private) or 31 March (public)
  • Calculate mean and median hourly pay gaps
  • Calculate mean and median bonus gaps
  • Work out the proportion of men and women who got a bonus
  • Split employees into 4 pay quartiles by gender
  • Publish on your own website and the government gender pay gap service
  • Deadline: 4 April (private) or 30 March (public) the following year
  • Keep your data published for at least 3 years
  • EHRC can take enforcement action if you fail to publish
On this page

Related guides in Compliance & Legal

Preventing discrimination at work

Your duties under the Equality Act 2010 to prevent workplace discrimination. Covers the nine protected characteristics, types of …

Gender pay gap reporting promotes transparency and equality in pay across organisations. Reporting is mandatory for large employers with 250 or more employees, but smaller businesses can voluntarily publish their data to demonstrate commitment to fairness.

What you must report

The six calculations you must publish:

  1. Mean gender pay gap - Difference between average male and female hourly pay
  2. Median gender pay gap - Difference between midpoint male and female hourly pay
  3. Mean bonus gap - Difference in average bonus
  4. Median bonus gap - Difference in midpoint bonus
  5. Proportion receiving bonuses - % of men and women who received bonus
  6. Pay quartiles - Gender split across four equal pay bands

Who counts as an employee

Include all employees on the payroll on snapshot date:

  • Full-time and part-time employees
  • Employees on leave (maternity, sick, etc.) - include if receiving full pay
  • Partners in LLP (only if they have employment contract)

Exclude: Genuine self-employed contractors, directors with no employment contract, volunteers.

Calculating hourly pay

Use 'ordinary pay' which includes:

  • Basic salary
  • Allowances (shift, location, on-call)
  • Pay for piece work

Exclude from ordinary pay: Overtime, redundancy pay, pay in lieu of notice, benefits in kind, loans.

Bonus pay is calculated separately and includes: Annual bonuses, performance-related pay, profit-sharing, long-service awards, non-consolidated bonuses.

Publication requirements

You must:

  • Publish data on your own website (link required in report)
  • Upload to government Gender Pay Gap Service
  • Include written statement signed by senior person confirming accuracy
  • Keep published for 3 years minimum

Data is publicly searchable - employees, job seekers, and media can compare your figures to competitors.