The BBC has asked newsreader Huw Edwards to cut his near-£600,000 salary as it scrambles to fend off a legal row over the gender pay gap.
As the Corporation grappled with the resignation of China editor Carrie Gracie, it emerged that key female presenters including Europe editor Katya Adler had been handed pay rises. On a day of chaos:
As the BBC grapples with the resignation of its China editor Carrie Gracie over the gender pay gap, it is trying to cut the salaries of some of its male stars to make things more even. Newsreader Huw Edwards (pictured) is earning £600,000 a year
- Miss Gracie’s resignation dominated Radio 4’s Today programme – but, as a presenter on the show, she was not allowed to discuss it;
- The Equality and Human Rights Commission said it could take action if the broadcaster had broken the law;
- The BBC admitted a long-awaited report into presenter pay had been hit by delays;
- Scores of high-profile women including Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon backed Miss Gracie;
- BBC staff were warned they could not report on Miss Gracie’s pay row if they had backed her publicly.
Miss Gracie, who earned £135,000 a year, quit in protest at widespread ‘pay discrimination’ – turning down a £45,000 raise – and has moved to another role in the newsroom.
The BBC has kept secret details of which women had pay rises – but the Mail revealed last year that Newsnight host Emily Maitlis had her salary hiked by more than £50,000.
Miss Gracie, who earned £135,000 a year, quit in protest at widespread ‘pay discrimination’ – turning down a £45,000 raise – and has moved to another role in the newsroom
Now it appears BBC bosses have also tried to tackle the gender pay gap by cutting pay for its male stars.
Bosses have asked Edwards to take a sizable cut, amid concerns that his salary for the News At Ten looks dramatically out of kilter.
Last night, the 56-year-old was still locked in negotiations. As he is on a permanent staff contract, the BBC needs his permission to cut his pay.
Miss Gracie had accused the BBC of a ‘secretive and illegal’ pay culture and said she ‘no longer trusts bosses to give me an accurate answer’.
She said she had warned director-general Lord Hall last August that she would resign if the broadcaster did not pay men and women the same for the same jobs.
The 55-year-old was furious that North America editor Jon Sopel was paid up to £250,000 and Middle East editor Jeremy Bowen up to £200,000.
Miss Adler – the fourth international editor – earned less than £150,000 before her pay rise.
Miss Gracie (pictured) had accused the BBC of a ‘secretive and illegal’ pay culture and said she ‘no longer trusts bosses to give me an accurate answer’
Miss Gracie, who is fluent in Mandarin, said she rejected the £45,000 pay rise as she would not ‘collude in unlawful pay discrimination’.
Today programme host John Humphrys has admitted he took a pay cut shortly after the BBC rich list revealed he made up to £650,000 a year.
These cuts and the selective pay increases for female staff were designed to quell anger – but yesterday it became clear they have backfired.
Female presenters were furious they had not been singled out for pay increases, while others claimed to have been promised bosses would ‘sort things out’ – only to be told their salaries would stay the same.
The BBC was forced to publish pay details for its 96 highest-paid staff last summer, and has spent the past six months urging presenters to be patient as it examines the problem.
It commissioned an audit of presenter pay with a report supposed to be published before Christmas, but insiders say it is now on course for the end of this month.
They claimed the delay was down to the complexity of the work.
An insider said: ‘This whole thing about equal pay for equal jobs is really difficult because we don’t work in a toothpaste factory.’
Yesterday, well-placed sources said the delays and silence had made staff even angrier.
One newsroom source said: ‘How did they allow things to get to this state? It’s amazing how badly this has been handled.
‘They keep kicking it into the long grass – and now it has got out of hand.’
Another said: ‘They’re so terrified of things getting out that they don’t explain things properly – but all the secrecy then makes it worse.’
Miss Gracie revealed the only call she had received from BBC chiefs since the story broke was to ask if she would still front the Today programme yesterday.
Senior sources said bosses were hopeful they could persuade Miss Gracie, who lived 5,000 miles from her teenage children while in Beijing, to remain China editor.
Yesterday BBC news director Fran Unsworth warned staff impartiality rules meant they could not report on the issue if they tweeted in support of Miss Gracie.
The BBC said it performed better than many organisations on equal pay and an audit had found no systemic discrimination.