Believing in accessibility for all

Equality in employment


We are committed to achieving equality in employment and learning practices.
 We promise to 

  • create an environment where differences and contributions of all are valued 
  • ensure every employee is entitled to a working environment which promotes dignity and respect 
  • ensure no form of discrimination, intimidation, bullying or harassment will be tolerated 
  • ensure that training, development and progression are available to all 
  • recognise that equality in the workplace is good management practice and makes good business sense 
  • review all our employment practices and procedures to ensure fairness 
  • recognise that breaches of our equality policy will be regarded as misconduct and could lead to disciplinary proceedings 
  • monitor and review our equality policies and performance yearly 

Gender pay gap and equality monitoring


Summary of workforce

 

2021 - 2022

2022 - 2023

2023 - 2024

Target

How well are we doing?

Top 5% of earners who are female

42.42%

42.86%

34.21%

45%

10.79% below target

Top 5% of earners who belong to a black, Asian, or ethnic minority background

9.09%

11.43%

15.79%

14%

1.79% above target

Staff who are registered disabled

10.03%

11.57%

10.72%

12%

1.28% below target

Staff from a black, Asian, or ethnic minority background

24.69%

26.54%

26.23%

26%

0.23% above target

Percentage of workforce under 25

4.78%

4.78%

6.52%

8%

1.48% below target

Gender profile

Male
62.35%

Female
37.32%

Male
61.57%

Female
38.43%

Male
61.59%

Female
38.41%

Male
65%

Female
35%

3.41% above target

Gender pay gap


Mean average gender pay gap (hourly rate)

 

March 2019

March 2020

March 2021

March 2022

March 2023

Male

£15.17

£15.43

£16.56

£16.89

£17.80

Female

£14.09

£14.08

£15.78

£16.43

£17.69

Gender pay gap

7.12%

8.74%

4.71%

2.72%

0.62%

The mean Gender Pay gap has reduced by 77% compared to 2022 at 2.72% now at 0.62%.


Median average gender pay gap (hourly rate)

 

March 2019

March 2020

March 2021

March 2022

March 2023

Male

£15.04

£15.34

£16.01

£16.29

£17.29

Female

£13.28

£13.64

£16.01

£16.78

£17.78

Gender pay gap

11.7%

11.08%

0%

-3.01%

-2.83%

As at the snapshot date of 31 March 2023, there was -2.83% gender pay gap between males and females employed by WH. Where we have a negative percentage, this means that the midpoint hourly rate of pay of female employees is higher than the pay of male employees.

Salary quartiles


Lowest earners

 

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

Male

93 males

51%

85 males

48%

82 males

50%

76 males

53%

79 males

54.48%

Female

88 females

49%

91 females

52%

83 females

50%

67 females

47%

66 females

45.52%

Middle earners

 

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

Male

100 males

55%

91 males

52%

125 males

76%

114 males

79%

113 males

77.40%

Female

82 females

45%

85 females

48%

40 females

24%

30 females

21%

33 females

22.60%

High earners

 

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

Male

160 males

88%

157 males

89%

91 males

55%

76 males

53%

78 males

53.42%

Female

22 females

12%

19 females

11%

74 females

45%

68 females

47%

68 females

46.58%

Top earners

 

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

Male

109 males

60%

111 males

63%

116 males

70%

97 males

67%

94 males

63.95%

Female

73 females

40%

64 females

37%

50 females

30%

47 females

33%

53 females

36.05%

 

  • We've reduced our gender pay gap

    We have taken steps to reduce our gender pay gap. As of 31 March 2023, there was a negative pay gap of -2.83% between the average median hourly pay of our male and female employees. This means that the midpoint hourly rate of pay of female employees is higher than the pay of male employees.

    We are proud to be a fair and progressive employer and we've helped to bridge this gap through: 

    • our equality forum celebrating key dates such as International Women's Day
    • a popular mentoring programme to support professional and career development
    • our revised recruitment process where candidates are assessed against a range of elements, not just based on their interview
    • partnering with several recruitment organisations to develop targeted recruitment opportunities for underrepresented groups
    • every recruitment panel being made up of a diverse group of staff
    • work being done to support applicants with mentoring prior to the interview process
    • a range of family-friendly policies that support staff to balance their work, home and family life.

     

  • Our plans

    There's always room for improvement to ensure we are celebrating and respecting differences, so here's what we have planned as we look forward:

    • develop and consult on our new Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) strategy to ensure it is fit for purpose and the objectives support the changing landscape of housing
    • promote learning opportunities to colleagues on our revised HR policies, aligned to new ways of working so employees (where job role allows) are empowered to work flexibly which will in turn support gender equality
    • continue to promote equality, diversity and inclusion across WH through a variety of channels
    • deliver on our priorities and key initiatives as set out in our EDI Strategy action plan
    • develop PowerBI dashboards to provide greater insight into the business to include ethnicity pay gap reporting and annual employment monitoring
    • review the current targets that were set against the 2011 Census to reflect the outcomes of the 2021 Census more closely
    • continued use of the mentoring scheme to support staff opportunities for development and promotion
    • review further collaboration opportunities with customers and partners in the city
  • Our staff 

    Where we are underrepresented amongst our staff, we will always state that applications from that group are welcomed when we advertise jobs. We also advertise on Proud Employers.