Women in their 50s suffer worst in the gender pay gap, new figures reveal 

Women in their 50s suffer worst in the gender pay gap, new figures reveal

  • Research by Rest Less claims the gender pay gap gets worse with age 
  • At the age of 40, both men and women are thought to hit their peak salaries
  • The chance of women in their 50s earning an equal amount to men is slim 

Women in their 50s suffer the most from the gender pay gap, according to new research.

In the UK the mean average salary for a woman in her 50s working full time, 35 hours or more a week is just over £32,000.

Men of the same age receive around 20 per cent more than their female counterparts, showing that the pay gap gets worse as we get older.

According to an advice site for the over-50s, Rest Less, at the age of 40, both men and women hit their peak salaries.   

New research suggests that the chances of a woman in her 50s earning the same as a man is slim

Stuart Lewis, founder of Rest Less said the chances of women in their 50s earning an equal amount to men is slim.  

‘Women in their 50s are facing an equality battle on multiple fronts in the workplace, firstly because of their gender and secondly because of their age.

‘With such a tight labour market, and the wealth of talent and skills on offer amongst women in their 50s and 60s, it is surprising not to see more employers actively seeking out and engaging with this audience to help fill a very real skills gap.’

A separate study suggested that one in five people over the age of 50 took on supplementary work as well as their full-time job.

Extra work included cleaning, accountancy, jobs in the gig economy such as driving, or letting out rooms in their house, said mobile business account firm ANNA Money.

A Government Equalities Office spokeswoman said: ‘These statistics demonstrate how women are likely sacrificing a larger pay packet, and career growth, because they are doing the bulk of childcare and unpaid work – like taking care of elderly relatives and their home.

‘Equality at work has a huge benefit to business, the economy and society. We have invested in returners to work, and are working closely with businesses and employers across the country to ensure they close the gap.’

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk