Last year, the BBC was caught in a media storm of its own after publishing details of all its stars who earned £1,50,000 a year (as per the requirements of its Royal Charter). The figures revealed that just a third of its top talent earning over that threshold were women, with the list highlighting striking differences even between hosts on the same show. The controversy provoked calls for swift change from within and outside the BBC, with over 40 of its top presenters publishing an open letter calling for the organisation to take urgent action.
The BBC, which pledges to sort out its gender pay gap, may have hoped that subsequent developments — including an audit conducted by PwC that concluded that there was no “systematic gender discrimination” among its employees (excluding on-air journalists and editors) and figures that revealed a gender pay gap of 9.3% within its ranks (as opposed to a national average of 18.1%) — will have taken the focus away from the organisation.
However, it returned to the spotlight swiftly after its China Editor Carrie Gracie resigned, accusing the public sector broadcaster of “breaking equality law” and “resisting pressure for a fair and transparent pay structure”. Her decision came after she challenged the 50% pay disparity between her and male international editors. Addressing the BBC’s audience, whose licence fee pays for BBC programmes and services, she warned the organisation was not living up to its stated values of trust, honesty and accountability.
The controversy has raised many questions in Britain where the BBC has long been a politicised issue, as well as a beacon of national values and international face. Adding to the furore was the fact that many journalists within the organisation who publicly supported Ms. Gracie following her resignation were banned from reporting on the story (in line with the organisation’s impartiality commitments). Unions have accused the BBC of a two-faced approach: citing austerity and the public sector to justify capping wages of junior staff while paying through the nose for top talent.
Tip of the iceberg?
The controversy has raised further issues. Britain had touted its pay gap reporting requirement as a major step towards equality, but the BBC controversy highlighted how a seemingly small gap between the average pay for men and women did not exclude worrying and systematic differences between individuals. The BBC’s issues had emerged after it was asked by the government to disclose pay details. Other companies are not required to do the same. So could this just be the tip of the iceberg? Moreover, how long is too long when it comes to meeting legal requirements? While the BBC maintains it is striving to close the gender pay gap by 2020, Britain’s Equal pay Act came into effect in 1970.
The problems highlighted by the BBC case have led to calls for a redesign of Britain’s equality legislation. “Equality legislation has consistently failed to stamp out discrimination. It must now be redesigned so businesses cannot hide discriminatory practices,” says the Women’s Equality Party, which is calling for greater details on hiring, salary and parental leave data for firms with a pay gap beyond a certain level.
The BBC’s problems are far from over. A group called #BBCwomen has called for urgent action, and revealed that over 200 women in various positions had made complaints about pay. Britain’s Equality and Human Rights Commission is also looking into the issue, as is a parliamentary committee.
