As this year’s data is released, we tackle the most common misconceptions

Thousands of companies have filed their gender pay gap figures, revealing men are paid, on average, more than women in the majority of British businesses.

Despite the results, myths and misconceptions about the gender pay gap persist. We’ve pulled together some of the most common myths to help you navigate the pay gap deniers.

There is no gender pay gap

The most extreme myth is that gender pay gap is a lie perpetuated by feminists who use statistics dishonestly to further their cause.

This is a view shared by a small but vocal coalition of rightwing think tanks, Jordan Peterson, and men’s rights activists.

Writing in the Spectator, Kate Andrews, the associate director of the Institute of Economic Affairs, said women are “bombarded with inflated statistics, cherry-picked and designed to make them feel helpless”.

It’s fair to point out the flaws in the statistics. The median gap is calculated by lining up all men’s and women’s wages from top to bottom, and comparing the number that falls in the middle for each gender. As with all averages, it smooths out nuances and doesn’t account for differences in specific job roles, age, or previous experience.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Stella Creasy discusses the gender pay gap on Sky News.

But the figures are an important indicator of structural inequality. The data shows eight in 10 companies pay male employees more, and some companies pay the men twice as much as women on average. The median gap is a blunt tool, but a powerful one. To understand why the pay gap exists we need more data with more detail.

Women have children

Some take a more charitable view, and concede the pay gap does exist. But paying women less is inevitable, because there are inherent differences between men and women’s labour: the primary one being childcare.

In a blog post for the Adam Smith Institute, Ben Southwood writes: “Women leave the labour market during crucial years, setting them substantially back in labour market terms. They decide to take time out to have and raise children … perhaps moving to more flexible work or less demanding jobs.”

Again, there is an element of truth here. When broken down by age, the ONS finds the gender pay gap for full-time employees between the ages of 18 and 39 years was close to zero, but began to widen for people over the age of 40. When both full and part-time employees are included in the calculation, the gender pay gap widens after the age of 30.

Martin Daubney (@MartinDaubney) So when you remove the biggest drivers of #GenderPayGap (children/part time work) the earnings gap all but vanishes (and in some studies lesbians earn 42% more than straight women)

Women do choose to have children, and many will reduce their hours when they do. But it doesn’t follow that their career must stall because of it.

Men also choose to have children but the impact on their careers is virtually non-existent. Shared parental leave (SPL) was introduced in 2015 but only 3.5% of eligible families chose it in 2018, according to research by telecoms company PowWowNow. A third of fathers who did not take SPL said they could not afford it, according to research by the Working Families campaign group, prompting calls for the government to increase statutory paternity pay.

Figures also show the gender pay gap often starts long before women have children. Just one year after completing their education, female graduates can expect to earn £1,600 less than their male peers, according to the Department for Education.

Women work in industries that pay less

Another myth says the gender pay gap is inevitable as women choose lower-paid jobs because of fixed biological traits.

In an interview with Channel 4’s Cathy Newman, Jordan Peterson said these innate differences explained why the majority of nurses are women and the majority of engineers are men. “Men and women won’t sort themselves into the same categories if you leave them to do it of their own accord,” he said.

“Those are ineradicable differences ... if you leave men and women to make their own choices you will not get equal outcomes.”

Play Video 0:51 Cathy Newman interviews Jordan Peterson on Channel 4 News – video

To take up Peterson’s example, it’s true that engineering is dominated by men. Only 23% of the UK’s science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) workforce is female. Women in STEM are paid 20% less than their male colleagues annually, according to a 2018 survey by the New Scientist.

Peterson ascribes this gender imbalance to innate differences between men and women. But the theory that women have less aptitude for science subjects has been repeatedly debunked. Finding the causes of male dominance is more complex but a lack of female role models and stereotypes about masculine and feminine jobs are two well-evidenced theories.

Emma Griffin, professor of modern British history at the University of East Anglia, wrote a compelling account of how work was gendered and how these gender distinctions came to be seen as natural.

“According to the Victorians, women were ‘naturally’ inclined towards motherhood and home, while men were ‘naturally’ destined to govern, conquer and work. And low female wages were not simply an expression of this worldview, they also helped to create it,” Griffin wrote.

According to ONS data from 2015, women still perform the bulk of unpaid domestic work, including childcare, laundry and housework. Although the distribution of unpaid work is a broad societal issue, there is much that individual companies can do.

Some employees at UBS face long­-term cuts to their bonuses after maternity leave, while research by the Equality and Human Rights Commission found many British employers believe women “take advantage” of their pregnancy and “have worrying attitudes towards unlawful behaviour when it comes to recruiting women”.

To close their pay gaps, companies should ensure women are on shortlists for senior roles, be transparent about pay and promotions, and encourage men to take shared parental leave, according to government guidance.

Additional reporting by Anisa Holmes

• This article was amended on 5 April 2019. An earlier version said that a year after completing their education, female graduates can expect to earn £3,600 less than their male peers. The correct figure is £1,600.