Warehouse, Coast and Oasis share gender pay gap data

London - Oasis, Warehouse, and Coast are the latest high street fashion retailers to publicly share their gender pay gap information ahead of the government deadline of April 4.

Over at Coast, women’s mean hourly rate was 71 percent lower than their male counterparts - meaning women only earn 29p for every 1 pounds that men earn when comparing mean hourly rates. The female median hourly rate was found to be 40 percent less than men, which sees women earning 60p for every 1 pound that men earn. The occasion wear retailer also reported a mean bonus pay gap of 92.85 percent, noting that a quarter of its female employees received a bonus last year in comparison to 83 percent of its male employees.

However, in its gender pay gap report Coast stressed that there are “no inconsistencies” in the manner it pays female and male employees in the same role. The high street retailer noted that its data had been affected due to the larger proportion of men working in higher paid roles at its head office, as well as the form of its executive team. “We are confident that there are absolutely no inconsistencies in the way we pay our male and female employees for the same role,” said Coast in its report. “Those on the same, similar or equivalent roles are paid equally, however, we have identified a pay gap which is driven by the nature of our business.”

“Coast is a brand which designs clothes for women who want to look beautiful, feel amazing and stand out in their own inimitable style. As a result, we find that that the majority of people who want to work for the brand are Coast customers themselves and therefore women.” The retailer added that it employs 867 women and 12 men, 7 of which work in its London head office, two of which sit on its executive team.

Oasis reported a mean hourly pay gap of 37.5 percent and a median hourly pay gap of 5.5 percent. Its mean bonus pay gap is 94.9 percent and its median bonus of 96.6 percent. 0.5 percent of its female employees received a bonus, as did 2.2 percent of its male employees. At the moment 97.5 percent of its total employees are women and 2.5 percent are men. However, its male employees tend to hold more highly paid roles than their female counters, added Oasis.

“Even though we are proud of the activity we undertake, the gender pay gap shown in this report demonstrates that male employees in Oasis receive a higher average pay rate than our female employees,” said Liz Evans, CEO of Oasis Fashions in a statement. “This is through men being largely underrepresented at our most junior level and more represented in the most senior or highly paid roles and functions.”

Lastly, Warehouse reported a mean hourly pay gap of 16 percent for women versus men and a median hourly pay gap of 3 percent. The womenswear retailer also revealed that its mean bonus pay was 7.6 percent higher for female employee s , but 59.7 percent lower on a median basis. 3.1 percent of its female employees received a bonus in 2017, as did 3.4 percent of its male workers - which is equal to 11 women and 1 man. This difference is due to the predominantly female workforce, said Warehouse.

“Even though we are proud of the activity we undertake, the gender pay gap shown in this report demonstrates that male employees in Warehouse receive a higher average pay rate than our female employees,” added Evans. “This is through men being largely underrepresented at our most junior level and more represented in the most senior or highly paid roles and functions.”

Photo: Warehouse, SS18