Women are more likely not to notice if their employer underpays them. This is according to new research by ADP, that revealed that almost one in three women (30%) do not always check or even understand their payslips, and subsequently wouldn’t realise if they were paid incorrectly. The ADP Workforce View research surveyed over 10,000 employees throughout Europe, to investigate how employees feel about current issues in the workplace and the future of work.

Itemised Payslips, new legislation that is coming into force on 6th April 2019, will give contractors, freelancers, and zero-hour workers the right to receive a detailed payslip from their employer regardless of their employment status. With the Office of National Statistics (ONS) recently reporting that women make up 55% of zero-hours contract workforce, they are most likely to be affected by inconsistencies in their pay. The British government introduced the Itemised Payslips legislation to increase transparency in the workplace and to ensure workers are paid fairly and accurately in all industries across the UK.
The Workforce View research reveals that industries generally dominated by women, such as Healthcare and Retail, Catering & Leisure, are the sectors where employees are least likely to realise if they were paid incorrectly. Around a third of people in the healthcare sector (35%) and retail, catering and leisure sector (32%) said they wouldn’t realise if they were paid incorrectly.

When comparing unpaid overtime, the survey finds that 18% of women work up to five hours a week for free in contrast to only 10% of men. Simultaneously, both men (29%) and women (30%) work six to ten hours unpaid, while men (4%) tend to do more free work than women (2%) when looking at those that work an extra 21 – 25 hours.

Speaking about The Workforce View research, Jeff Phipps, Managing Director at ADP says: “With one in three women saying they find their payslips confusing, the report highlights that there are still gaps when it comes to pay, equality and transparency in the workplace. This is mostly true in women heavy industries where there are holes in understanding pay. Sectors such as Healthcare and Retail, Catering & Leisure, tend to focus on shift work where employees often work different hours each month that vary in pay rates. This means that workers in these industries are likely not to know if they have been underpaid.”

“The introduction of Itemised Payslips legislation is fantastic news and a step in the right direction. Good employers will always ensure that they are clear and honest with their employees about the hours they work and their pay. With the legislation coming into force, organisations now have the chance to be completely transparent with their workers, this will reduce the confusion employees face when looking at their payslips. Articulating their staffs’ wages in a simple and itemised way will help build trust amongst businesses and their employees while boosting employee engagement and productivity.” Concludes Phipps.