WPP has published its UK gender pay gap data for 2018, revealing that the median pay gap for the WPP network is 14.9%, which is 3% lower than the national average.
While the network tells AdNews that such data is not collected by WPP in markets outside the UK at present, it has not ruled out the move altogether.
The pay gap issue has also been a hot button topic in the Australian advertising industry, with many agency groups working toward finding a solution locally.
The British government brought in new regulations in April 2017 that require all companies with 250 employees or more to publish their gender pay gap data.
WPP has approximately 14,000 employees (excluding associates) in the UK and a gender-balanced workforce of 51% men and 49% women.
However, the result revealed there are fewer women in senior executive roles, where pay is highest, resulting in a gender pay gap.
This imbalance reflects the wider industry as the 2018 Diversity Study by the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising showed that only 32.7% of C-suite roles in the UK are held by women.
In addition to statutory reporting, WPP’s mean pay gap is 23.7% down close to 2% on the year prior.
WPP UK country manager Karen Blackett OBE said the network was focused on "championing an inclusive culture" across the network, as it focuses on developing a new strategy.
“WPP’s external industry partnerships and the work we create help influence and challenge society’s perceptions of women and the gender inequality they face," Blackett said.
“However, there is much more work to do to accelerate the progression of WPP’s female leaders. Globally around half of our senior management are women, but we need to increase the pace of change to improve gender balance at the very highest leadership levels by focusing on programmes that create a stronger female talent pipeline.”
To improve gender balance in its leadership teams, WPP stated it will continue to invest in best practice initiatives and programmes that "advance the development" of its female leaders and create a stronger and more diverse talent pipeline.
WPP also aims to raise awareness of important gender equality issues through external partnerships and the work it creates. The report outlines some of these initiatives, which include WPP’s partnership with UN Women and its support of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 5 (to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls).
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