Gender pay gap

This is our annual gender pay gap report for the snapshot date of 5 April 2024.

• Our mean gender pay gap is 22%
• Our median gender pay gap is 39%
• Our mean gender bonus gap is 69%
• Our median gender bonus gap is 67%
• The proportion of male employees receiving a bonus is 69% and the proportion of female employees receiving a bonus is 85%

Table 1: Pay quartiles by gender

This table shows our workforce divided into four equal-sized groups based on hourly pay rate. Band A includes the lowest-paid 25% of employees (the lower quartile) and Band D covers the highest-paid 25% (the upper quartile).

Why do we have a gender pay gap?

Legally, men and women must receive equal pay for:

• the same or broadly similar work;
• work rated as equivalent under a job evaluation scheme; or
• work of equal value.

We are committed to equal opportunities and equal treatment for all employees regardless of sex, race, religion or belief, age, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy/maternity, sexual orientation, gender reassignment or disability. We have a clear policy of paying employees equally for the same or equivalent work, regardless of their sex (or anything else listed above). We carry out regular pay and benefits audits and evaluate job roles and pay grades to ensure fairness.

The generalised mean and median figures both suggest a gender pay gap of 22% and 39% respectively for basic pay and of 69% and 67% respectively for bonus pay. However, these generalised figures are misleading, in that the gap is not due to a difference in pay between genders for the same grade of job. Rather, it is due to staff in secretarial roles being exclusively female.

The more detailed figures provide the same analysis, but for each level of seniority within our firm, both for support staff and for qualified legal staff.

On a mean and median basis, female administration staff were paid more.

On a mean basis, male associates were paid slightly more. Legal professionals were paid the same. Female paralegals were paid more.

On a median basis, female associates were paid more, as were female legal professionals and paralegals.

One male senior manager was paid more than one female senior manager, who have wholly different specialisms and levels of experience in their roles.

We are committed to fair pay based on role, merit, seniority, performance and market data. We review our pay annually on this basis.

Ongoing procedures and initiatives

• Unconscious bias training: The firm carried out unconscious bias training for its leadership team in March and April of 2024. Consideration will be made to further extend this to include all partners and managers.
• Flexible working policy: The firm’s flexible working policy includes a day one right and is clear in that we will consider requests from all employees to work flexibly, regardless of their role, level of seniority, length of service, and that flexible working is not just part-time working.
• Career development: The firm’s career development process includes a career panel which consists of three partners (one male, two female and includes HR representation to oversee the process). The career panel provides opportunity for all to apply for promotion or, to receive career development guidance which includes the drafting of an appropriate personal development plan.
• Learning & Development: The firm has also implemented increased learning and development opportunities via the Paris Smith L&D Academy to support career development for all and to provide increased opportunity for everyone to progress and be promoted to more senior roles within the firm.
• Steps to promote gender diversity: As part of the firm’s ongoing review of diversity and inclusion, it is intended that we create an evidence base which will include gender monitoring in people processes such as recruitment, career development and promotion, flexible working and returning from maternity or other parental leave.
• Supporting Menopause: The firm has its own policy which sets out its commitment to providing support to those who suffer with symptoms of menopause. It has provided extensive training for all on managing the menopause and recognises it’s obligations in relation to providing support including access to private medical insurance which specifically provides menopause support and any associated treatment.
• Supporting parents: The firm has its own procedures and guidelines for supporting employees before, during and after maternity and other parental leave. The firm has also produced a full guidance pack for those taking maternity/adoption leave which includes support with post-natal planning and, offers enhanced maternity/adoption and paternity pay over and above statutory payments. The firm is looking to offer working parents’ groups to enable an open forum for discussion and support where required.
• Creating an evidence base: To find any barriers to gender equality and to help us make priorities for action, the firm intends to introduce gender monitoring to understand:
  • the number of men and women applying for jobs and being recruited;
  • the number of men and women applying for and getting promotions;
  • the number of men and women leaving our organisation and their reasons for leaving;
  • the number of men and women in each role and pay band;
  • the number of men and women working flexibly and their level within our organisation;
  • the number of men and women who return to their original job after maternity or other parental leave; and
  • the number of men and women still working a year after they took maternity or other parental leave.

By themselves, none of these initiatives will remove any gender pay gap – and it may take time before they have an impact, particularly due to the number of female secretarial staff employed by the firm. In the meantime, every year we will tell you what we’re doing to reduce the gender pay gap and the progress that we’re making. Right now, we have plans to extend our evidence-gathering.

Any further initiatives launched throughout the year will be reported on the firm’s intranet.

I, Huw Miles, Managing Partner, confirm that the information in this statement is accurate.

Signed

Huw Miles

Date 27.02.2025