Diversity and inclusion

In April 2019, we published our second UK gender pay gap report in which we confirmed that our average gender pay gap for the nine legal entities in scope was 1.3%, with an average bonus gap of 12.5%. Whilst the figures compare favourably with the national average of 17.9% and many other companies, we are not complacent and have set out our plans for increasing female representation at all levels of the organisation. For more information please see our UK gender pay gap report for 2018.

We have achieved the boardroom target set out in the Hampton Alexander Review with 40% female representation and have turned our attention to the leadership and management recruitment pipelines to ensure that we build on this success, not just for gender but for people from black, Asian and minority ethnic groups too who are also under-represented in these populations. Based on our current data (see charts below) we know that women comprise 17% of our senior leadership population and a smaller percentage identify themselves as a person of colour. In 2020, we will be setting some long-term targets to address the imbalances in this population.

In 2019, we launched a pilot sponsorship programme, which, if successful, will be extended to a wider population in 2020. To help broaden the reach of our diversity and inclusion strategy, we have also set out our plans for an Inclusion Council which will enable us to gather more data and use it to tackle some of the barriers to inclusion that we know exist. In parallel with the work of the Council, we will continue other efforts to raise awareness of the strategy and the importance of creating an environment where all employees are inspired to do their best.

Initiatives we started in 2019, such as our global celebration of Inclusion Week and the introduction of unconscious bias training will continue.

Employee engagement and representation

Keeping all of our employees updated during times of significant business change is always a priority. Throughout 2019 and in early 2020, news about the proposed separation and subsequent sale of our traditional cash businesses was regularly cascaded by the Group CEO, leadership teams and employee representatives. All available channels were used to ensure people were aware of the latest situation and had the opportunity to ask questions and raise concerns about the potential impact of this decision. This continues to be the case as the sale of the cash businesses is fully implemented.

With around 30% of our employees covered by collective agreements, the trade unions we work with via our Ethical Employment Partnership, the European Works Council and local recognition agreements provide important communication channels. Through them we receive insights and feedback on the company’s performance and constructive challenge on potential decisions which may impact our employees, such as the company’s approach to safeguarding our employees in the context of Covid-19. Based on their feedback, we have sought to establish a better rhythm and regularity for our communications via emails, newsletters and conference calls to bring certainty and clarity where we can at such a time of change.