A 14 per cent pay gap exists between men and women in nursing despite women making up 89.6 per cent of the workforce, according to new research from Randstad.
The report, entitled ‘Assessing the lack of senior opportunities for women in nursing’, also found that despite the number of women in the industry, men currently occupy two-thirds of senior positions. The report found 45 per cent healthcare professionals didn’t think enough was being done to get more women into senior roles within the industry.
The research suggested that 84 per cent of women had never asked for a pay rise, compared to 71 per cent of men. Women also gave varying reasons for feeling they’d been held back in the workplace including lack of confidence, a fear of being turned down, fear of their boss’s reaction, and belief that an employer’s attitudes were holding them back.
Victoria Short, Managing Director of Randstad Care, said, “Despite the nursing sector’s predominately female workforce, there is still a disproportionate amount of men occupying senior or management positions. It also saddens me to see that a pay gap still exists between the sexes despite having a wealth of nurses with the skills and experience to lead, manage and excel.”
“It is disappointing that the gender spread isn’t more evenly reflected at the top but reasons why more women don’t go onto senior positions are complex.”
“Nurses really are the backbone of the NHS and without them it simply wouldn’t function. Greater respect for nurses would in turn lead to greater self-belief and ultimately more women making it into senior positions and earning higher wages.”
You can download the full report here.
