RNLI releases latest gender pay gap figures

The gender pay gap at the RNLI is -0.4%, based on an average hourly rate (the mean average) for men and women employed by the charity in Great Britain.

This means, on average, women at the RNLI are paid 0.4% more than men. This equates to 7 pence more per hour.

The gender pay gap does not show differences in pay for comparable roles at specific grades. Instead, it is used as a broad measure of earnings across a whole organisation. The UK’s average gender pay gap is 15.4%, as reported by the Office for National Statistics for 2021.

Sue Barnes, People Director at the RNLI, said: ‘At the RNLI, we are committed to providing equality to all our employees and welcome diversity in our organisation.

‘We are focused on ensuring that inclusion and diversity is built into the culture of the RNLI and actively promote these values to ensure our staff and volunteers have a supportive work environment. We are proud to provide staff with a great place to work.

‘We have a formal process of grading jobs to ensure rigorous decisions are made on job grades and rates of pay. Gender pay gap data is reviewed by our Remuneration Committee and actions to address gender pay gaps form part of our annual pay review cycle.’

Any organisation in Great Britain that has 250 or more employees must publish and report specific figures about their gender pay gap.

The RNLI’s full report can be viewed here: https://rnli.org/about-us/how-the-rnli-is-run/gender-pay-gap-reporting

As required by the national regulations, the RNLI’s report provides:

· The mean and median gender pay gap figures

· The mean and median gender pay gaps for bonuses

· The proportion of men and women who received a bonus

· The proportion of men and women in each pay quartile

The RNLI’s gender pay gap marginally fluctuates year-on-year. In 2020, it was –1.5%, in 2019, it was –3.0%, in 2018, it was –3.1%.

The change in our gender pay gap is reflective of our changing staff population, the varying start date of our seasonal lifeguards and the date that Easter falls, as the pay figures reflect the tax year (which runs April to April). The pandemic also had an impact on the number of lifeguards that we employed in 2020 and 2021, which influenced our figures.

On 5 April 2021, the RNLI had 2,301 employees based in Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales), with 68% being male and 32% female. The RNLI’s Executive Team currently consists of seven members of staff – four men and three women.

The regulations require the gender pay gap figures to be published for Great Britain only.

When staff from the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland are included, the RNLI’s mean gender pay gap figure is 0.2%. For the Republic of Ireland it is 4.4%.

Notes to editors

· More details and national gender pay gap figures can be found on the Office for National Statistics here: https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/bulletins/genderpaygapintheuk/2021

RNLI media contacts

For more information, please contact Becky Cheers, RNLI National Media Manager – [email protected]. Alternatively, call the RNLI Press Office on 01202 336789 or email [email protected].

RNLI online

For more information on the RNLI please visit rnli.org. News releases and other media resources, including RSS feeds, downloadable photos and video, are available at the RNLI News Centre rnli.org/news-and-media.