UCU responds to new report on graduate gender pay gap

Responding to the findings of a report by TheCompleteUniversityGuide.co.uk, which shows that male graduates earn an average of £1,400 more than female graduates, UCU said that the findings echoed its own research on the gender pay gap in colleges and universities, adding that more needed to be done to tackle persistent barriers to equal pay.

UCU general secretary, Sally Hunt, said: 'This report lays bare the scale of inequality facing our graduates in terms of pay. It's deeply troubling that, nearly 50 years after the Equal Pay Act, women are still getting paid significantly less for doing the same work.

'The report shows that the pay gap is widespread, and UCU's own findings show that women are paid an average of £990 less per year in colleges and £6,103 less per year in universities than their male counterparts. If we hope to change things for the next generation of graduates, we urgently need a firm commitment from business and the education sector to tackling persistent barriers to equal pay.'