In the spirit of transparency and continuous improvement at Built Environs, we welcome the opportunity to take stock and reiterate our commitment to gender equality in our organisation.
Findings in the WGEA Gender Pay Gap report have been consistent with our own independent assessments and align with areas that we have been actively working to improve. We firmly believe that a diverse and inclusive workforce is not only a moral imperative but also a strategic advantage. Embracing gender equality aligns with our core values, enhances our organisational culture, and ultimately contributes to our overall success.
As is clear in the WGEA data, our gender pay gap results are a result of workforce composition differences rather than any disparities between men and women working in like roles. In other words, because we have more men than women working in senior roles, a wider gap in median earnings exists for women compared to men across all levels of the organisation. Our long-term strategy to continue to close this gap starts at the ground level, targeting an even gender balance across our graduate cohort. As a result, our current workforce composition shows a higher proportion of women in entry level and administrative roles compared to senior technical and management positions. This relationship between experience, specialism and remuneration is reflected in our results, and we acknowledge the need for ongoing focus on workforce composition to address this disparity in representation at senior levels.
The report highlights our ongoing efforts to increase female representation in leadership roles. In recent years, the percentage of female appointments to managerial roles (including promotions) has exceeded the overall percentage of females in the management category. There are a number of approaches in place to continue to raise this bar, such as including more women in our key leadership programs than the current proportion of female leaders.
Our commitment to addressing the gender pay gap is also reflected in the following policies and actions:
- Gender pay equality in like for like positions, formally reviewed and addressed since 2019 in our Annual Remuneration Review processes
- Transparent and consistent performance assessment processes
- Ongoing analysis of starting salaries by gender, with specific feedback to hiring managers
- Policies or strategies in place to address gender inequality, including:
- Workforce composition
- Equal remuneration between women and men
- Flexible working arrangements
- Sexual harassment
With the release of the WGEA Gender Pay Gap report, Built Environs reaffirms our long-term commitment to gender equality, and the results give urgency to our ongoing journey. We invite stakeholders, including employees, clients, and partners, to engage with the report and collaborate with us in fostering a workplace that champions diversity and inclusion. We look forward to continuing to see improvement in this area – not only within our organisation but the industry as a whole.
