P-05-836 Gender Pay Gap Reporting, Correspondence – Petitioner to Committee, 13.03.19

I would like to thank the committee for their continued examination of this issue in light a reticence form the Welsh Government to provide any concrete plans in their response.

In response to the letter from the Deputy Minister I am really disappointed that again the Welsh Government has spent more time in their reply talking about how committed to gender equality they are than actually laying out any concrete actions to ensure gender pay gap data is not only in the public domain but accessible.

Despite the reassurances that this is a priority piece of work the timings and plans offered are vague at best and the letter, as was the case with previous correspondence, seems more focused on political positioning than implementing change.

Regarding the core issue of the petition the publication of gender pay gap data in an accessible format I am still completely unclear in the Welsh Government even has an understanding of what data openness means. It does not simply mean the data is in the public sphere but that people are supported to access it. The current system allows organisations to obfuscate whereas the system used in England asks employers to publish this data in a clear manner, allowing for comparison between similar employers. I am still unclear as to why this system has not been introduced in Wales even as a stop gap measure, particular when a large organisation such as Cardiff University has voluntarily published their data in this manner.

As the Deputy Minister mentions the unprecedented change we are facing as a society, and at a point where the distrust of public institutions is at a high I believe any action to make or public sector more transparent would be welcomed. 

Yours 

Estelle Hart