Gender Pay Gap Report

Relevant or snapshot date and workforce data

The relevant or snapshot date is the key date on which the calculations must be made. The relevant date for this report is 31 March 2022 and it therefore reflects pay on that date and not pay received at the date of publication.

Workforce Data

At the relevant date of 31 March 2022, South Hams District Council's (SHDC) workforce consisted of 309 employees, with 155 being female (50.16%), and 154 being male (49.84%). For comparative purposes, at 31 March 2021, the relative figures for the workforce was a total workforce of 298, with 153 females (51.3%) and 145 males (48.7%).

It is important to note that SHDC shares the majority of its workforce with West Devon Borough Council (WDBC) following a major restructure in 2015.
The newly created shared workforce in 2015 was roughly 75% SHDC and 25% WDBC. This was broadly in line with the size of the organisations before the shared workforce, and new employees are allocated to one of the Councils to keep that historic balance in place. There is no consideration of salary or gender when allocating new employees, although where a like for like replacement is appointed, the new employee is normally allocated the same employer as the predecessor.

At the relevant date of 31 March 2022, the shared workforce consisted of 409 employees, with 216 being female (52.8%) and 193 being male (47.2%). For comparative purposes, at 31 March 2021, the relative figures for the workforce was a total workforce of 395, with 211 females (53.4%) and 184 males (46.5%).
WDBC does not need to report its gender pay gap as it employs fewer than 250 people.

Findings and Observations

At the relevant date of 31 March 2022, SHDC had a gender pay gap of 7% based on mean earnings, and 9% based on median earnings.

This is the second time SHDC has reported a gender pay gap where male employees earn more than female employees. Historically, the Council had a negative gender pay gap (i.e., female employees earned more than male employees) primarily because of the dominance of male employees in the waste and recycling teams, whose earnings were mainly in the lower two quartiles and amounted for over 20% of the total workforce.

In October 2023, the waste and recycling service was brought back in-house and it is therefore predicted that the Council will show a negative gender pay gap when it reports in March 2024.

At the relevant date of 31 March 2022, there was a gender pay within the shared workforce of 6% based on mean earnings, and 10% based on median earnings.

Future Action

Whilst this gender pay gap is within a level of tolerance, the Council needs to remain vigilant about a future gender pay gap drift, and it remains important that its policies to protect against discrimination in pay and grading, promotion and appointment to senior roles are always adhered to.

Through the Council's job evaluation scheme, it can demonstrate that female and male employees are paid the same rate of pay for the same work, like work, or work rated as equivalent in accordance with its obligations under the equal pay provisions in the Equality Act 2010.

As mentioned above, the headline figure will be reversed in 2024 to show a negative gender pay gap. However, this will be because of the predominance of male employees in the waste service earning in the lower two quartiles and should not distract from the gender pay gap amongst the remainder of the workforce.

Relevant or snapshot date

The relevant or snapshot date is the key date on which the calculations must be made. The relevant date for this report is 31 March 2021 and it therefore reflects pay on that date and not pay received at the date of publication.

At the relevant date (31 March 2021), WDBC employed 94 people, of which 57 were female and 37 were male.

Workforce data

At the relevant date of 31 March 2021, South Hams District Council's (SHDC) workforce consisted of 298 employees, with 153 being female (51.3%), and 145 being male (48.7%). For comparative purposes, at 31 March 2020, the relative figures for the workforce was a total workforce of 292, with 145 females (49.6%) and 144 males (49.4%).

It is important to note that SHDC shares the majority of its workforce with West Devon Borough Council (WDBC) following a major restructure in 2015.

The newly created shared workforce in 2015 was roughly 75% SHDC and 25% WDBC. This was broadly in line with the size of the organisations before the shared workforce, and new employees are allocated to one of the Councils to keep that historic balance in place. There is no consideration of salary or gender when allocating new employees. However, where a like for like replacement is appointed, the new employee is normally allocated the same employer as the predecessor.

At the relevant date of 31 March 2021, the shared workforce consisted of 395 employees, with 211 being female (53.4%) and 184 being male (46.5%). For comparative purposes, at March 31st 2020, the relative figures for the workforce was a total workforce of 385, with 205 females (53.2%) and 180 males (46.8%).

WDBC does not need to report its gender pay gap as it employs fewer than 250 people.

Findings and Observations

At the relevant date of 31 March 2021, SHDC had a gender pay gap of 6% based on mean earnings, and 8% based on median earnings. This is the first time SHDC has reported a gender pay gap where male employees earn more than female employees. Historically, the Council had a negative gender pay gap (i.e. female employees earned more than male employees) primarily because of the dominance of male employees in the waste and recycling teams, whose earnings were mainly in the lower two quartiles and amounted for over 20% of the total workforce.

At the relevant date of 31 March 2021, there was a gender pay within the shared workforce of 5% based on mean earnings, and 10% based on median earnings.

Future Action

While this gender pay gap is within a level of tolerance, the Council needs to remain vigilant about a future gender pay gap drift, and it remains important that its policies to protect against discrimination in pay and grading, promotion and appointment to senior roles are adhered to at all times.

South Hams District Council: Gender Pay Gap March 2022

(Based on relevant date of 31 March 2021)

South Hams District Council and West Devon Borough Council Shared Workforce - Gender Pay Gap Report March 2022

Relevant or snapshot date

The relevant or snapshot date is the key date on which the calculations must be made. The relevant date for this report is 31 March 2020 and it therefore reflects pay on that date and not pay received at the date of publication.

It should be noted that due to the national pandemic, the requirement to report on the gender pay gap for the year ending 31 March 2019 was waived. However, a more meaningful comparison is with figures calculated at 31 March 2018 as these figures include the predominantly male workforce outsources in April 2018.

Workforce Data

At the relevant date of 31 March 2020, South Hams District Council's (SHDC) workforce consisted of 292 employees, with 148 being female (50.4%), and 144 being male (49.4%). For comparative purposes, at March 31, 2018, the relative figures for the workforce was a total workforce of 377, with 145 females (38.5%) and 232 males (61.5%). The reduction in the workforce was largely attributable to the decision to transfer the waste and recycling services to a private sector organisation in April 2018, and to the corresponding transfer of 84 employees.

It is important to note that South Hams District Council shares the majority of its workforce with West Devon Borough Council (WDBC).

The figures that are reported are for those employees employed by SHDC. The two Councils have had a shared workforce following a major restructure in 2015.

The newly created shared workforce in 2015 was roughly 75% SHDC and 25% WDBC. This was broadly in line with the size of the organisations before the shared workforce, and new employees are allocated to one of the Councils to keep that historic balance in place. There is no consideration of salary or gender when allocating new employees. However, where a like for like replacement is appointed, the new employee is normally allocated the same employer as the predecessor.

WDBC does not need to report its gender pay gap as it employs fewer than 250 people, but it nevertheless does, and we also report on the shared workforce (see below).

Findings and Observations

The report (see below) shows that the mean and median rate of pay for females are higher than for males.

The hourly mean pay for females is £15.30 compared to £14.64 for males. This gives a mean gender pay gap of -4.44%. This means, based on mean earnings, females earn on average 4.44% more than males.

The hourly median pay for females is £14.30, compared to £14.25 for males. This gives a median gender pay gap of -0.42%.

The spread of gender by quartiles are shown in the table on page 4. This is based on median earnings.

The most significant factor in the gender pay gap report is the transfer of frontline services to an external contractor with effect from 1 April 2019. This affected 84 employees, the vast majority being male. As a result the mean hourly earnings of males rose from £11.69 (based on the last reported earnings on 31 March 2018) to £14.64. Although annual wage increases account for a proportion of the increase, the removal of transferred males from the lower quartile had the biggest impact. As such, the mean gender pay gap closed in favour of males, from -11% to - 4.44%. The report still shows that, based on mean earnings, female employees earn more than male employees.

The transfer of the predominantly male frontline workforce in April 2019 also had a similar impact on median hourly earnings, with the gender pay gap closing in favour of males from -17% to -0.42%. In March 2018, males accounted for 83% of those in the lowest quartile (based on median earnings). This fell to 62% in March 2020.

The report still shows that, based on median earnings, female employees earn more than male employees.

When looking at the figures for the four Quartiles, there are more males in the lower quartile. This is because most of the lower paid jobs are within the Localities Service (including Civil Enforcement Officers), the Grounds Maintenance and Building Maintenance teams which are predominantly filled by male employees.

The figures for the middle lower quartile show that 63% are female. This quartile will consist of predominantly case managers. The figure for the upper middle quartile shows a fairly even split (48% female) and the figure for the Upper Quartile also remains a fairly evenly split, with a small majority of higher earners been female (54%). This reflects the broadly even distribution of female and male employees across the Specialist grades, and in the Extended Leadership Team in roles such as Environmental Health, Planning, Housing and Benefits, Finance, Legal and Information Technology.

At the relevant date of 31 March 2020, the Council's Senior Leadership Team (SLT) consisted of 4 people. Of those, 1 was employed by South Hams District Council and the remaining 3 by West Devon Borough Council. Of the 4 members of SLT, 1 was female. The resignation of the female Chief Executive in March 2020 (and therefore before the relevant date) meant that the salary was not taken into account. This had a significant impact on the mean and median earnings of female employees, and in turn the gender pay gap.

Since the relevant date, a new Chief Executive has been appointed. The officer is male and the report in April 2022 will reflect this increase in male salaries.

The Council paid 22 employees a bonus payment during the financial year to 31 March 2020. Of these, 8 were female (representing 5% of the total female workforce) and 14 were male (representing 9.79% of the total male workforce).

The amount of bonus paid also showed a gender pay gap of 25%. Of the 22 payments made, 12 were to staff working at Salcombe Harbour in recognition of their exceptional performance during the summer of 2019. Of the 12 payments made, 10 were paid to males. Both female employees employed at Salcombe Harbour received a payment. Of the remaining 10 employees to receive a payment, 50% were female. The mean average payment was slightly lower because the largest single amount was payable to a male member of ELT for taking on additional senior responsibilities following the resignation of a member of SLT.

Future Action

The report demonstrates that the Council does not have a gender pay gap. However, the Council remains committed to maintaining a fair and equitable pay and grading system and it will continue to monitor the distribution of salaries between genders.

The Report does show that fewer females received a bonus payment than males, and that on average the bonus paid was lower. Although the reason for the payments were not tainted by the gender of the employee, the Council through the Human Resources Panel (made up of members of SLT, the Business Managers, Finance and Human Resources) who agree the payments will continue to monitor these payments to make sure decisions are not being made based on the gender of the employee.

Through the Council's job evaluation scheme, it can demonstrate that female and male employees are paid the same rate of pay for the same work, like work, or work rated as equivalent in accordance with its obligations under the equal pay provisions in the Equalities Act.

Shared Workforce with West Devon Borough Council

The comparative figures for West Devon as a sole employer show the gender pay gap based on mean salaries at 10.85%, and for median salaries at 12.44%.

The joint report shows that the mean gender pay gap is -1.42%, compared to -4.4% at SHDC as a sole employer and 10.85% at WDBC.

The median gender pay gap is -4.7% compared to -0.24% at SHDC and 12.44% at WDBC.

The figures for the shared workforce present a more accurate reflection of the gender pay gap, and based on both the mean and the median salaries, females earn more than males.

South Hams District and West Devon Borough Councils Shared Workforce

Gender Pay Gap Report - March 2021

Relevant or snapshot date

The relevant or snapshot date is the key date on which the calculations must be made. The relevant date for this report is 31 March 2018 and it therefore reflects pay on that date and not pay received at the date of publication.

Findings and observations

The report (see page 4) shows that the mean and median rate of pay for females are higher than for males.

The hourly mean pay for females is £13.01, compared to £11.69 for males. This gives a mean gender pay gap of -11%.

The hourly median pay for females is £11.38, compared to £9.72 for males. This gives a median gender pay gap of -17%.

The majority of employees in the Lower Quartile (83%) are male. This reflects the density of male employees in frontline services, such as waste and recycling where the salaries are lower on average than in other service areas.

This pattern is repeated in the Lower Middle Quartile, where almost two thirds of employees are male (63%).

When looking at the Upper Middle Quartile, the balance is more even, but the majority of employees are female (54%). The main role captured within this quartile is in Case Management, which provides the business and administrative support to the organisation.

In the Upper Quartile, the balance is equal with half of the employees being female (50%). The main roles captured in this quartile are Specialists carrying out professional services such as Environmental Health, Planning, Housing and Benefits, Finance, Legal and Information Technology.

The Council's Senior Leadership Team (SLT) consists of 5 people. Of those, 2 are employed by South Hams District Council and the remaining 3 by West Devon Borough Council. Of the 5 members of SLT, 3 are female.

Future Action

The report demonstrates that the Council does not have a gender pay gap. In part, this is due to the high density of male employees in front line services where the salary levels are in the Lower and Lower Middle Quartile. However, there is clear evidence that female employees occupy senior positions in the Council. The Council remains committed to maintaining a fair and equitable pay and grading system and it will continue to monitor the distribution of salaries between genders.

Job Evaluation Scheme

Through the Council's job evaluation scheme, it can demonstrate that female and male employees are paid the same rate of pay for the same work, like work, or work rated as equivalent in accordance with its obligations under the equal pay provisions in the Equalities Act.

Shared Workforce with West Devon Borough Council

The Council operates a shared workforce with West Devon Borough Council (WDBC) for many services. WDBC does not need to report its gender pay gap as it employs fewer than 250 people.

In the spirit of transparency, the gender pay gap report when taking into consideration the employees of both Councils is shown below.

The joint report shows that the mean gender pay gap is higher at -12.4%, compared to -11% for South Hams as a sole employer. However, the median gender pay gap falls slightly from -17% to -16.2%.

South Hams District and West Devon Borough Councils Shared Workforce

Gender Pay Gap Report - March 2018

Relevant or snapshot date

The relevant or snapshot date is the key date on which the calculations must be made. The relevant date for this report is 31 March 2017 and it therefore reflects pay on that date and not pay received at the date of publication.

Findings and observations

The report (see below) shows that the mean and medium rate of pay for females are higher than for males.

The hourly mean pay for females is £12.42, compared to £11.51 for males. This gives a mean gender pay gap of -7.91%.

The hourly medium pay for females is £10.91, compared to £9.62 for males. This gives a medium gender pay gap of -13.41%.

Three quarters of employees in the Lower Quartile (76.3%) are male. This reflects the density of male employees in frontline services, such as waste and recycling where the salaries are lower on average than in other service areas.

This pattern is repeated in the Lower Middle Quartile, where 7 out of ten employees are male (79.9%).

The pattern is reversed when looking at the Higher Middle Quartile, where a majority of employees are female (62.4%). The main role captured within this quartile is in Case Management, which provides the business and administrative support to the organisation.

In the Upper Quartile, broadly half of employees are female (47.8%). The main roles captured in this quartile are Specialists carrying out professional services such as Environmental Health, Planning, Housing and Benefits, Finance, Legal and Information Technology.

The Council's Senior Leadership Team consists of 6 people. Of those, 3 are employed by SHDC and the remaining 3 by West Devon Borough Council. Of the 6 members of SLT, 3 are female.

Future Action

The report demonstrates that the Council does not have a gender pay gap. In part, this is due to the high density of male employees in front line services where the salary levels are in the Lower and Lower Middle Quartile. However, there is clear evidence that female employees occupy senior positions in the Council.

The Council remains committed to maintaining a fair and equitable pay and grading system and it will continue to monitor the distribution of salaries between genders.

Through the Council's job evaluation scheme, it can demonstrate that female and male employees are paid the same rate of pay for the same work, like work, or work rated as equivalent in accordance with its obligations under the equal pay provisions in the Equalities Act.

Shared Workforce with West Devon Borough Council

The Council operates a shared workforce with West Devon Borough Council (WDBC) for many services. WDBC does not need to report its gender pay gap as it employs fewer than 250 people.

In the spirit of transparency, the gender pay gap report when taking into consideration the employees of both Councils is shown on page 5.

The joint report shows that the mean gender pay gap is higher at -8.51%, compared to -7.91% for South hams as a sole employer.

However, the median gender pay gap falls from -13.41% to -6.32%.

South Hams District and West Devon Borough Councils Shared Workforce

Gender Pay Gap Report - March 2018