Waterstones reveals gender pay gap amid wages row

Waterstones has unveiled its gender pay gap, amid an ongoing row over wages paid to its shop staff.
By The Newsroom
Published 3rd Apr 2019, 19:41 BST
Updated 3rd Apr 2019, 19:42 BST
The bookseller has been under the spotlight in recent weeksThe bookseller has been under the spotlight in recent weeks
The bookseller has been under the spotlight in recent weeks

The median gap, which measures the middle hourly pay rate, rose by 0.2% to 4.7%. Waterstones said this was due to a decline in the number of women in its highest-paying roles.

The retailer said its mean gender pay gap, a reflection of the average hourly rate of pay, had narrowed by 2.2% to 11.7% as of April 5 2018.

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It comes after Waterstones was embroiled in a dispute over pay last month, when a petition called on managing director James Daunt to pay the Real Living Wage to staff on the shop floor.

As of this week, the petition had amassed 8,848 signatures and was supported by an open letter signed by over 2,400 published authors.

Mr Daunt defended the pay structure of the retailer, telling the Press Association that it was “simply not profitable enough” to increase wages across the board.