The disability pay gap in the North West has barely improved since 2014 – making it one of the worst regions in England for disabled people to earn fairly, according to Office for National Statistics data.
The region’s pay gap has fluctuated significantly over the last 10 years but shows no sign of continuous improvement, as disabled employees in the North West earned 9.8% less than their non-disabled peers in 2014 and this gap barely narrowed to 9.5% by 2023.
The North West’s median pay has steadily risen over the last decade, from £10.23 per hour in 2014 to £14.83 in 2023 for non-disabled employees, and from £9.23 per hour to £13.42 for disabled employees.
But despite these rises, the North West’s pay gap has remained consistent.
Harriet Edwards, head of policy at national disability charity Sense, said: “It’s infuriating that disabled people still earn significantly less than non-disabled people.
“This is fundamentally unfair, and the persistent gap has got no better over the last decade.”
The country’s average regional pay gap has changed over the years but tends to remain in double digits, and has even increased from 10.1% in 2014 to 11.4% in 2023.
This means that despite the North West’s incremental decrease from 9.8% to 9.5% over the last 10 years, the region is still not doing as badly as the country on average.
These statistics were published within three months of the King’s Speech at the State Opening of Parliament in July, which announced that UK companies with over 250 employees would have to report ethnicity and disability pay gaps under Labour plans.
General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress Paul Nowak said: “Everyone who works for a living deserves to earn a decent living.
“After 14 years of Tory failures and inaction, Labour’s commitment to introduce mandatory disability pay gap reporting is a welcome first step.
“We need an economy that allows disabled people to thrive – not one that traps them in poverty.”
Disability Rights UK has calculated that on average, disabled people spend an additional £1,010 per month to secure the same standard of living as a non-disabled person.
They are also more likely to be employed in low-paid occupations and industries, and to be given unreliable zero-hours contracts.
Chloe Schendel-Wilson, director and co-founder of the Disability Policy Centre, said: “With the disability pay gap actually getting worse over the past decade, these figures make clear the need for robust action to drive more, better jobs for disabled people.
“We welcome elements of the government’s recent white paper which appeared to acknowledge the importance of helping disabled people and those with long-term health conditions into meaningful employment.
“The fundamental problem is disabled people get stuck between both a poorly designed welfare system and inaccessible workplaces; the absurd outcome of this is that everyone loses, as disabled people miss opportunities to improve their quality of life, employers miss out talent and the wider economy misses out on potential growth.
“We can do so much better as a country and our latest report outlined three key policies that can make a difference, including reducing tax on occupational health for employers, to drive investment in making workplaces more accommodating for disabled people.”
Some regions, however, have shown better progress.
The East Midlands’ pay gap, for example, dropped from 9.3% to 8% over the last 10 years, whilst the South West dropped from 11% to 10% and Yorkshire and the Humber dropped from 11.3% to 10.5%.
London has shown a particular improvement over the last 10 years, with its disability pay gap almost halving from 14.3% in 2014 to 7.4% in 2023.
The pay gap of 14.3% made London the worst region in 2014, but the gap of 7.4% was the smallest pay gap across all regions last year.
These figures are taken from recently released Annual Population Survey (APS) data from the Office for National Statistics, which uses regression analysis to provide more insight into factors that affect pay for disabled and non-disabled employees in the UK.
The report is based on people aged 16 to 64, and only includes those who were an employee at the time of interview.
As per the core definition of disability under the Equality Act 2010, a person is considered to have a disability if they have a long-standing illness, condition or impairment which reduces their ability to carry out day-to-day activities.
Sandi Wassmer, CEO of the Employers Network for Equality and Inclusion, said: “There is a fundamental lack of understanding among employers about what disabled people can and can’t do.
“Disabled workers should not need to advocate for fair pay and decent employment conditions – these should be given to and expected by all as part of a positive working culture that recognises diversity as a strength and values the contribution and talent of everyone.”
Cover photo by Marcus Aurelius on Pexels.
