UK gender pay gap narrows, but only just

The gender pay gap among full-time workers in Britain narrowed in 2015, but only just, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics.

The ONS’ 2015 Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings showed the gender pay gap for median earnings fell to 9.4% from 9.6% last year. This is the lowest since the survey began in 1997, although the gap has changed "relatively little" in recent years.

As far as part-time employees are concerned, there was no difference between male and female workers, which remained at 19.2%.

The survey showed that women between the ages of 22 and 29 were paid on average slightly more than men.

From 40 upwards, the gap was much wider, however, with men being paid substantially more. This is likely to be connected with the fact that women who have children often take time out of the job market.