UCU names and shames colleges and universities that hold down women's pay

• UCU produces league tables of top 30 colleges and universities with the worst gender pay inequalities
• Shameful statistics published to mark International Women's Day

UCU today publishes a new report highlighting colleges and universities that pay female staff significantly less than men who are doing the same job.
 
Holding Down Women's Pay [116kb] names and shames the top 30 English further education colleges with the largest gender pay gaps amongst lecturing staff. A further three league tables show the top 30 UK universities with the largest gender pay gaps amongst academic staff, professors and academic-related staff.
 
At nearly two-thirds (132 out of 203) of the English further education colleges that provided data to UCU, male lecturers are paid on average £1,000 more than women. Kirklees College in Yorkshire topped the chart of English colleges, paying female lecturers an average £5,959 less than their male colleagues - a pay gap of 19.3%. In the ten worst offending colleges, the pay gap between the average pay for women and men is greater than 8%.
 
In higher education, the average shortfall faced by female academics was £6,103 a year. According to the union's data, just eight higher education institutions paid women equally or more than men. At 154 institutions, women are paid less.
 
The higher education institution with the largest gender pay gap amongst academic staff was the University of Leicester, where women earn £9,793 less than men.
 
The institution with the largest gender pay gap amongst professors was City University in London where female professors earned an average £15,992 less than their male colleagues - a pay gap of 16.4%. Bangor University in Wales had the most unequal pay amongst academic-related staff, with women earning an average £3,355 less than men - a pay gap of 7.9%
 
UCU general secretary, Sally Hunt, said: 'These colleges and universities should not have allowed such shameful levels of pay inequality to persist. It's nearly 50 years since the Equal Pay Act came into force and they're still flying in the face of it.
 
'Today on International Women's Day, we would like to see a firm commitment from sector leaders to close the gap and are offering to work with institutions to make equal pay at every college and university a reality.'
 
UCU compiled the gender pay figures using its new online tool, Rate for the job, which allows members to make comparisons between pay rates at colleges and universities.