Ethnicity pay gap widens at Barclays
The average black employee earned 19.6% less hourly pay than the average white employee in 2022, and 52.8% less bonus pay.
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Your support makes all the difference.The ethnicity pay gap between black and white staff at Barclays increased last year, the bank has revealed, despite doubling the number of black managing directors in the UK.
The average black employee earned 19.6% less hourly pay than the average white employee in 2022, and 52.8% less bonus pay.
This means the hourly pay gap widened by 0.4 percentage points compared to the previous year, while the bonus pay gap widened by 1.2 percentage points.
I am clear that Barclays can only make the long-term progress we are striving for by continuing to build an inclusive culture, where all colleagues feel confident that they can progress in their careers to reach their full potential, regardless of their gender, ethnicity or other protected characteristics
The pay gap refers to the difference between the mean pay for black employees and the mean pay for white employees, as a percentage of the white employee’s average pay.
Barclays said the pay gap reflects underrepresentation, as there are fewer black staff in senior, higher-paying roles and more in junior positions, where they are given less in hourly and bonus pay.
It does not mean that staff are paid differently for doing the same job.
Barclays said it wants to increase the proportion of black and minority ethnic employees at senior levels, and across the group as a whole, in order to close the ethnicity pay gap.
As part of its “race at work” strategy, the bank plans to increase the number of underrepresented employees – referring to black, Asian and mixed race people – by 25% by 2025 in the UK.
Currently, women and certain ethnic groups are underrepresented in senior roles at Barclays. Being transparent about that, and the pay gaps that result, is important
This would bring representation to 5% of the group’s entire UK workforce.
It said it had achieved one of its ambitions of doubling the number of black managing directors by the end of the year.
Barclays also faces a gender pay gap of more than a third.
The average female employee earned 35.9% less hourly pay than the average male employee, and 67.6% less bonus pay.
Unlike the ethnicity pay gap, it narrowed slightly since 2021, with the hourly pay gap reducing by 0.4 percentage points and the bonus pay gap reducing by 2.3 percentage points.
Barclays said representation of women in senior and higher-paying roles has been improving, but there is still more to do to close the pay gap.
It stressed there has been a 37% increase in the number of women in senior roles in the last five years, and 31% of its managing directors and directors were filled by women at the end of 2022.
The group is striving for a global target of a third of its senior roles being filled by women by the end of 2025.
CS Venkatakrishnan, Barclays group chief executive, said: “I am clear that Barclays can only make the long-term progress we are striving for by continuing to build an inclusive culture, where all colleagues feel confident that they can progress in their careers to reach their full potential, regardless of their gender, ethnicity or other protected characteristics.
“Currently, women and certain ethnic groups are underrepresented in senior roles at Barclays.
“Being transparent about that, and the pay gaps that result, is important.
“It helps us track where we are in the pursuit of our goals, and helps us understand what tangible actions we can take to improve representation over time.”
Barclays reported pre-tax profits of £7 billion in 2022, down from the £8 billion reported at the end of 2021.