As part of our commitment to the Race at Work Charter, we’ve been voluntarily reporting ethnicity pay gap data since 2019. Our latest report mirrors the 2023–24 reporting cycle for mandatory gender pay gap reporting, using a snapshot date of 5 April 2023. We’ve published this report in January 2024, to coincide with the publication of our annual report and accounts for the year ending 30 June 2023.

Our commitment to closing the ethnicity pay gap

In October 2018, we signed the Race at Work Charter, which sets out seven actions to improve the representation of all employees at all levels in organisations. One of these is capturing ethnicity data and reporting progress. 

We first published our ethnicity pay data in our 2018–19 annual report and have published a dedicated ethnicity pay gap report since 2020. With four years of ethnicity pay gap data, we continue to report and we choose to go behind the headline figures. We do this because we are committed to fostering equality, diversity and inclusion within the CIPD and we want to understand how our culture and actions help us close the gap.

We remain committed to the Race at Work Charter. We pledge to keep listening to our own people. And we shape our policies, practices and roles based on what we learn, knowing that creating an inclusive culture within a talented, productive organisation means doing things differently. We also continue to call on the UK government to make this a mandatory requirement alongside gender pay gap reporting, and on employers to do so voluntarily.

Our ethnicity pay gap

The ethnicity pay gap is calculated by taking all employees across an organisation and comparing the average pay of our white employees with that of employees from ethnic minority groups. This means that even though we have clear externally benchmarked salary ranges in place for all jobs, to ensure that everyone is paid fairly for undertaking the same or a similar role, it’s still possible to have an ethnicity pay gap.

This year our median ethnicity pay gap widened by 2.3 percentage points to 16.8%. Our mean ethnicity pay gap widened by 2.0 percentage points to 13.1%. Fluctuations like these are not unexpected, particularly in a small organisation like ours, where small changes in our employee profile can have a significant impact.

Our report explores how our pay gap varies by ethnicity and the long-term actions we’re taking to close the gap over time. We continue to listen to our people from different ethnic groups across the CIPD. We want to understand their lived experience of working with us to inform all areas of policy and practice. We’re continuing to work towards a fully inclusive culture – one where difference is valued, where everyone has the option to work flexibly so they can deliver their best work, and where all CIPD people feel they belong and can be their authentic selves.

Download our 2023 ethnicity pay gap report

Access our ethnicity pay gap report archive

Views and insights

Explore our related content

Thought leadership
Analysis | Proposed changes to unfair dismissal rules risk more insecure work

Meaningful consultation is needed to ensure the Employment Rights Bill delivers intended outcomes, says Ben Willmott, CIPD Head of Public Policy

Thought leadership
Briefing | After recent claims, where next for equal pay?

Charles Cotton, CIPD senior adviser on pay and reward, explains the recent cases on equal pay claims and explores how you can protect yourself as an employer while also paying people fairly

Thought leadership
UK employment law round-up: September 2024

Monthly round-up of changes in employment law in the UK

Thought leadership
Critical role of HR business partnering in HR operating models

How can people teams balance line managers’ need for operational people management support while growing their team’s strategic influence through the HRBP role?

All Views and insights