How Much of the Remaining Gender Pay Gap is the Result of Discrimination, and How Much is Due to Individual Choices?

Using secondary data to obtain results which were representative of the UK population, this research identifies the key components of the persisting gender pay gap. It then quantifies them to assess the contribution of each factor to the remaining gender pay gap in the UK, something which few studies have done before. The research finds that of the factors which explain the gender pay gap, the following make the most significant contribution to the remaining gender pay gap in the UK: part-time work, education, size of the firm a person is employed in and Occupational Segregation. Occupational Segregation is a considerable problem in the UK, with women under-represented in all areas of higher managerial and professional occupations. Women are concentrated in low paid, low grade socio-economic groups, and in particular occupations such as childcare and administration. This segregation is even more noticeable among part-time workers, and persists even among those with Higher Education qualifications suggesting that a Higher Education qualification provides women with little advantage in cracking the glass ceiling. Although some of the factors might be interrelated for example, Occupational Segregation and part-time work there is a strong possibility that discrimination is embedded not only in the policies, processes and systems of the occupational structure, but also within factors associated in the past with the acquisition of education, training and work experience. Recommendations are made on how to achieve a further narrowing of the gender pay gap in the future. Unless these problems are dealt with now, the gender pay gap will remain for many years to come.