The gender pay gap for graduates is 15 per cent by the time e women are 24
and increases steadily until it passes 43 per cent when they reach 50.
The research figures were revealed at the Equal Opportunities Commission’s
conference on equal pay where its chairwoman, Julie Mellor, announced that the
organisation is joining forces with the NUS to tell students about the pay gap
and to encourage them to ask employers what they are doing about equal pay.
Mellor said: "If employers want to recruit the brightest and the best
in future, they are going to have to be able to prove that they provide equal
pay.
"If an employer cannot show they take equal pay seriously, students
might well ask themselves how much they value their staff."
Carl Gilleard, chief executive of the Association of Graduate Recruiters,
said it was in employers’ interests to ensure they demonstrate a commitment to
equal pay.
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"Our members want to recruit the cream of UK students – to do that they
need to answer questions on a range of issues, including equal pay," he
said.
