Good practice

United Kingdom Mandatory Gender Pay Gap Reporting (Equality Act 2010 / 2017 Regulations)

United Kingdom · London · See the United Kingdom profile

Since April 2017, all UK employers with ≥250 staff must publish annual gender pay gap data. Over 10,700 employers now report annually; the OECD median gender wage gap fell from 16.8% (2016) to 13.3% (2023), a 3.5 pp reduction. The model directly inspired the EU's Pay Transparency

10,700+

Employers reporting annually

16.8% → 13.3% (−3.5pp)

OECD median gender wage gap (2016–2023)

United Kingdom Mandatory Gender Pay Gap Reporting (Equality Act 2010 / 2017 Regulations)

Details

Maturity: Established
Promoter: UK Government Equalities Office / Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC)
Period: 2017–present
Keywords: gender pay gap, pay transparency, employment law, equal pay, reporting

Context

Since April 2017 the Equality Act 2010 (2017 Regulations) requires all UK employers with 250+ staff to publish annual gender pay gap data.

Results

Over 10,700 employers now report annually; the OECD median gender wage gap fell from 16.8% (2016) to 13.3% (2023). The model directly inspired the EU Pay Transparency Directive.

Implementation

Implementation detail (cost, timeline, staffing, conditions for success) is not yet available for this practice.

Data sources

Where this practice's information was retrieved from, and when.

C-NAPSE web research — accessed 2026-06-21
UK Government Equalities Office / Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) — accessed 2026-06-21
UK Government – Gender pay gap reporting overview — accessed 2026-06-21
ONS – Gender pay gap in the UK: 2023 — accessed 2026-06-21
World Bank – Pay transparency policies (UK & Denmark) — accessed 2026-06-21
OECD – Gender wage gap indicator — accessed 2026-06-21

Attachments

Source image

Quality score: 100/100

How is this calculated?

Evidence: Observational / pre–post

Top 1% in this catalogue (719 scored practices)

Scores cluster high, so position within the catalogue is often more telling than the number alone.

Evaluation

Evaluated by C-NAPSE

Score profile — the dimensions behind the score — how it's computed

Transferability / replicability3/3

The UK model directly inspired the EU Pay Transparency Directive (2023/970/EU), Ireland's GPG Regulations (2022), and Australia's WGEA reforms (2023); it is the international benchmark for mandatory pay disclosure.

Impact on gender equality1/1

OECD data show the UK median gender wage gap fell from 16.8% (2016) to 13.3% (2023), a 3.5 pp reduction; over half of reporting employers improved their median gap vs their 2017–18 baseline.

Effectiveness1/1

Over 10,700 employers report annually (near-universal compliance); majority show improvement; World Bank research confirms pay transparency causally narrows gender pay gaps.

Efficiency1/1

A statutory reporting mandate achieves mass coverage at low regulatory cost; employer self-reporting and a public portal minimise administrative burden while maximising accountability.

Evaluated outcomes1/1

OECD annual wage gap data, ONS annual bulletin, UK Government monitoring, World Bank research (Cortés & Pan 2023), and LSE/University of Bath academic evaluations provide independent evidence.

Sustainability1/1

Annual reporting obligation continuously in force since April 2017; EHRC enforcement powers; no sunset clause; cross-party political support; extended to public sector.

Achievement / evidence1/1

Over 10,700 employers report annually covering ~15 million employees; 3.5 pp documented pay-gap reduction (OECD 2016–2023); model exported via EU Directive to 27 member states.

Gender-mainstreaming embedding1/1

Pay equity embedded in the Equality Act 2010; reporting covers bonus gaps and pay quartile distribution, structurally exposing intersecting inequalities beyond headline pay.

Curator validation1/1

Sources: ONS, UK Government, EHRC, OECD, World Bank research blog, peer-reviewed academic studies — all independently verifiable from authoritative institutions.

Cite this

Evidoria. United Kingdom Mandatory Gender Pay Gap Reporting (Equality Act 2010 / 2017 Regulations). Persistent ID: d5a85250-c9a5-4768-956c-48b68c98c145.

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