Gapsquare Blog

At Gapsquare, we have always been committed to helping businesses create fairness and inclusion at work. Now, this is more important than ever.

This morning we hosted an incredible panel (video to follow shortly) which brought together experts in employment law, finance, and internal communications to answer difficult questions about managing people and workplaces in times of crisis.

Julian Hemming, a partner as Osborne Clarke, used his 30 years of experience to talk about cutting overheads, furlough and legally managing workforce changes. Emma Dawson of Stitch, a Deloitte Business, shared her expertise about how to keep communications going between employees, and Iain Lownes of Smith & Williamson talked us through cash projections for the next 6 months.

Research shows that legal client's wider international workforce, customers, investors and stakeholders are highly engaged in the diversity, inclusion and pay equity agenda as ever growing legislation is enacted around the globe.

Law firms are increasingly needing to provide an all-encompassing, all-services offering to compete in the legal sector.

Law firms are pro-active in looking at their data for answers on the gender pay gap, but can they lead the way?

Over the past year, all UK law firms with over 250 employees have had to disclose their gender pay gap as part of a new set of pay transparency regulations. These firms have been pro-active in doing so and have reported various pay gap figures. In the top 25 law firms by turnover, some have reported pay gaps as high as 39% median (Linklaters), and others as low as 12% median (DLA Piper).

People will make or break a business. More diverse people will go even further and make a business innovative, challenging and perhaps even more importantly, profitable. On average, a business with diverse teams will have access to increased market share and 9% higher EBIT.

But how can we build more diverse businesses when current data shows companies have high gender and ethnicity gaps? These manifest themselves both in low proportions of diverse employees as well as high pay disparities for these groups. It does not seem businesses are making the most of powering growth with the right people. 

"217 Years, for the women you work with to be operating on a level playing field, for our daughters to be in with the same chance at success as our sons."

 

Want to learn more about the gender pay gap? Watch the Invest In Diversity Video Series below.