08 March 2023
If you are covering the latest HMRC personal incomes statistics, please see the following comment from Rachael Griffin, tax and financial planning expert at Quilter:
“New HMRC figures released this morning leave little to celebrate this International Women’s Day as it lays bare the fact that women earn considerably less than men at every stage of life.
“The new data highlight the significant inequalities in the earnings of women compared with male counterparts, and the disparities grow significantly as they enter middle age. Across all age groups, the median income was £28,700 for males, and just £23,600 for females – a huge 20% difference.
“17,000 men earn over £1 million and 33,000 earn over £500,000, compared to just 2,000 and 6,000 women respectively. While these numbers are stark, it is even more concerning that nearly 1 million more men earn £50,000 than women.
“Interestingly – though somewhat unsurprisingly - the number of female taxpayers peaks at the 50-54 age range, which suggests many women are either out of the workplace entirely or are earning considerably less during the years in which they are most likely to have young children. Comparatively, the number of male taxpayers peaks at just 30-34 years.
“Across all the data released this morning, the only area in which women outpace men is in the number earning the lowest levels of income. Women are considerably more likely than men to be earning £12,500-£15,000 in total income, while men take the lead in every other higher income band.
“These latest figures reiterate the dire need for government action in boosting women’s finance. At present, there is a significant gender pay gap during working life, and women will only suffer further when it comes to retirement as they simply will not have had the opportunity to build a good enough pension pot. What’s more, they also risk missing out on State Pension funds if they have not achieved the full 35 years’ of National Insurance contributions following the introduction of the new child benefit rules in 2013.
“Women still shoulder an enormous amount more caring work than men, and this partly feeds into why there is still such a significant gender pay and pension gap. Women often opt not to re-enter the workforce while their children are young as the cost of childcare is just too great, and this morning’s data reiterate this.
“There are long roads ahead in terms of truly improving gender equality, much of which lies in the hands of government. The legacy of inequality will echo throughout many arenas for some time to come, with the gender pension gap and more, and the knock-on effect of the inequalities experienced by women in their working lives will be incredibly stark without substantial intervention.”
