Gender Pay Gap Report 2024
Gender pay gap report
This is the seventh year that we have published our gender pay gap, for which
the median figure is now 0%. We are committed to maintaining this as close to
zero as possible, and to supporting diversity, equity and inclusion both within
the British Library and across our sector more generally.
Roly Keating, the British Library’s
Chief Executive, said:
Last year, with a median figure of 0.21%,
we effectively eliminated our gender
pay gap, and I’m delighted that this
year’s figure of 0% further improves
that position. I’d like to pay tribute to
colleagues across the Library for the
progress they’ve achieved in the years
since we committed to eliminating this
gap. I’m also determined that we should
sustain this progress as we report upon
and actively reduce pay gaps relating to
ethnicity and disability.
Jas Rai, the British Library’s
Interim Chief Operating Officer, said:
We are committed to making the gender
pay gap a thing of the past and I’m pleased
that we have maintained the progress
we’ve made on this front over the past
seven years. Closing the gap for good will
remain an ongoing effort, and we can’t
ever afford to be complacent about the
need for continuing focus, investment
and leadership to ensure that women can
develop, flourish and succeed working at
the British Library.
Gender pay gap – 5 April 2023
The gender pay gap is the percentage difference between
the median (or mean) hourly pay of men and women in
an organisation.
Gender pay gap
0%
Median
2.25%
Mean
The British Library’s median gender pay gap
is 0%. This means that on average women
earn the same as men.
Gender bonus gap
Three senior employees (two men and one woman) are
entitled to a bonus payment in accordance with the terms
of their contracts. One senior leader opted to not take
their bonus resulting in a 100% gender bonus pay gap.
Mean and Median
2023 – 100%
2022 – 100%
2023 2022 Men receiving a bonus 0.29% 0.29% Women receiving a bonus 0% 0%
Our people This is a snapshot of the British Library’s whole organisation demographics broken down by gender. Pie char t s howing a snapshot of the British Library's whole organisation demographics broken down by gender. 44% men, 56% women. Percentage of men and women in each quartile Quartiles are calculated by dividing the workforce into four equal-sized groups and show the proportion of men and women in each quartile band, quartile one being the lowest earning and quartile four being the highest earning. Pie chart showing the percentage of men and women in the first pay quartile. 44% men, 56% women. 56% 44% Pie chart showing the percentage of men and women in the second pay quartile. 43% men, 57% women. Pie chart showing the percentage of men and women in the third pay quartile. 42% men, 58% women. Pie chart showing the percentage of men and women in the fourth pay quartile. 54% men, 46% women. 57% 43% 58% 42% 54% 46%
Gender pay gap progression over time A bar char t sho wing the g ender pay gap p rogression over time: 2017 Median 1.81%, Mean 6.22% 2018 Median 0.35%, Mean 3.89% 2019 Median 2.04%, Mean 5.93% 2020 Median 1.86%, Mean 5.12% 2021 Median 1.89%, Mean 2.29% 2022 Median 0.21%, Mean 2.33% 2023 Median 0%, Mean 2.25% ession over time: 2017 Median 1.81%, Mean 6.22% 2018 Median 0.35%, Mean 3.89% 2019 Median 2.04%, Mean 5.93% 2020 Median 1.86%, Mean 5.12% 2021 Median 1.89%, Mean 2.29% 2022 Median 0.21%, Mean 2.33% 2023 Median 0%, Mean 2.25% on over time: 2017 Median 1.81%, Mean 6.22% 2018 Median 0.35%, Mean 3.89% 2019 Median 2.04%, Mean 5.93% 2020 Median 1.86%, Mean 5.12% 2021 Median 1.89%, Mean 2.29% 2022 Median 0.21%, Mean 2.33% 2023 Median 0%, Mean 2.25% ver time: 2017 Median 1.81%, Mean 6.22% 2018 Median 0.35%, Mean 3.89% 2019 Median 2.04%, Mean 5.93% 2020 Median 1.86%, Mean 5.12% 2021 Median 1.89%, Mean 2.29% 2022 Median 0.21%, Mean 2.33% 2023 Median 0%, Mean 2.25% time: 2017 Median 1.81%, Mean 6.22% 2018 Median 0.35%, Mean 3.89% 2019 Median 2.04%, Mean 5.93% 2020 Median 1.86%, Mean 5.12% 2021 Median 1.89%, Mean 2.29% 2022 Median 0.21%, Mean 2.33% 2023 Median 0%, Mean 2.25% : 2017 Median 1.81%, Mean 6.22% 2018 Median 0.35%, Mean 3.89% 2019 Median 2.04%, Mean 5.93% 2020 Median 1.86%, Mean 5.12% 2021 Median 1.89%, Mean 2.29% 2022 Median 0.21%, Mean 2.33% 2023 Median 0%, Mean 2.25% 17 M edian 1.81 %, Me an 6. 22% 2 018 M edian 0.35 %, Me an 3. 89% 2 019 M edian 2.04%, Mean 5.93% 2020 Median 1.86%, Mean 5.12% 2021 Median 1.89%, Mean 2.29% 2022 Median 0.21%, Mean 2.33% 2023 Median 0%, Mean 2.25%
Understanding our gender pay gap
We’re pleased to share positive news regarding our gender pay gap at the British
Library this year. The gender pay gap has decreased to 0% from 0.21% in 2022.
The mean gender pay gap has decreased slightly by 0.8% to 2.25% from 2.33% in
2022.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has reported its provisional gender pay gap
figures for 2023. Nationally the median pay gap for full time and part time staff is
14.3% (down from 14.4% in 2022), and the mean is 13.2% (down from 13.4% in
2022).
The ONS also produce breakdown by industry. The report indicates that within our
sector – Libraries, archives, museums and other cultural activities – there is a median
pay gap of 2.9% (11.9% in 2022), and a mean pay gap of 6.3% (9.7% in 2022).
Key insights
Key insight one
High percentage
of women in every
quartile
The percentage
difference of women
and men spread across
the organisation
remains fairly
consistent compared
to previous years. This
means that there is a
higher percentage of
women in each pay
quartile than men.
Each quartile has
between 11% and
14% more women
than men.
Key insight two
Increased negative
pay gaps in the
lower quartile
Quartile one has
increased negative
pay gaps in both the
mean (-0.86%) and
median (-1.57%) from
the previous year. This
means that on average
as a whole women are
paid more than men
in this section of the
Library which is likely
a result of key insight
one.
Key insight three
Outliers
contributing to
the mean pay
Quartiles two, three
and four are all
affected by outliers
causing the mean
pay gap to be higher
than the median in
each instance. This is
most prevalent in the
fourth quartile where
the mean pay gap is
2.76% and the median
is -0.37%.
Our commitment
In 2023, the year we celebrated the British Library’s 50th anniversary, we reached
our target of closing the gender pay gap.
Our commitment now is to ensure our gender pay gap remains close to 0% each
year. We will continue progressing gender equity, not only within pay, but across
all areas of working life in the British Library.
We will take the following actions to reduce and eliminate the
gender pay gap:
• We’re improving our family friendly
policies as part of our policy renewal
programme, to ensure guidance is fit
for purpose and covers a wide range of
needs. This includes the introduction of
new guidance on:
• Menstruation (periods)
• Fertility treatment
• Pregnancy loss
• Flexible working
• We’re introducing trans-inclusion
guidance for staff and managers and
widening our support for colleagues
across the Library
• We’re launching our new Diversity and
Inclusion strategy which includes five
areas of focus with gender equity being
one of these
• We’re reviewing our pay and
grading structure to ensure fairness,
competitiveness, and inclusivity across
the organisation
• We’re working on encouraging staff
to share their gender identity with
us so that we can ensure everyone is
included in improving gender equity in
the workplace. This includes fostering
an inclusive culture, where all staff
feel comfortable sharing their gender
identity
• We have introduced Fundamentals of
Management training including specific
modules on leading diverse teams.
We’re continuing to roll this out across
the organisation
• We’re continuing menopause
awareness and support sessions
for staff and managers
• We’re continuing to collaborate with
our Gender Equality Network colleagues
and Trade Union representatives. We
believe it is important to hear our
employee voice and encourage this
at every opportunity.
A pay gap is not the same as
unequal pay
A pay gap is not the same as unequal pay.
Unequal pay means that employees performing
equal work, or work of equal value, are not
receiving equal pay – which is unlawful.
The gender pay gap is a measure of the
difference between men and women’s average
earnings across an organisation as a whole over
a period of time, regardless of role or seniority.
This means that although we have a fair pay and
reward policy, and equal pay, we may still have
a pay gap.
Mean and median explained
The mean and median are different ways of
calculating the average of a dataset and are used
to calculate pay gaps. Both are used as they tell
us different things about the data. The mean or
mathematical average is worked out by adding
all the data values together and dividing by the
total number of values in the data set.
The median is the positional average. It is found
by ordering all values (in a data set) in numerical
order and finding the middlemost value. The
advantage of the median over the mean is that
the mean is affected by any outliers in the data
set (such as a very small or large value), whereas
the median looks for the value ‘positioned’ in
the middle of the data set. Therefore, we lead
with the median figure.
Data source
We use the data recommended by the
government to calculate the gender pay gap.
However, we recognise that not all our staff
will identify as men or women. In recent years
we have encouraged staff to share their gender
identity with us including non-binary and trans
staff in this data capture. Our action plan aims to
ensure gender equity among all staff including
women, non-binary, and trans staff.