I. What is the UK Gender Pay Gap Reporting? Due to our rapid growth, in 2021 we exceeded 250 employees in the UK and are publishing our UK gender pay gap according to UK regulations. We note that the gender pay gap regulations differ from regulations related to equal pay for equal work of equal value in the same location. The UK gender pay gap regulations relate to the disclosure of the difference between average and median pay for men and average and median pay for women according to a prescribed methodology, which does not take account of employee role, level, location, experience or performance. The gaps are particularly impacted by highly paid individuals in the most senior roles given that senior roles attract the highest levels of pay. II. Equitable pay analysis Aesop has been partnering with leading consulting firm Mercer for our gender pay equity review since 2020. By taking a deep dive into the explained and unexplained gap of our global workforce, our approach goes beyond the standard reporting requirements of international governments, including in the UK. The outcome of the study helps us understand what is driving any inequalities, which enables us to make meaningful changes without detriment to the flexibility of work and career opportunities offered to women across the organisation.
The unexplained pay gap for Aesop globally stood at -0.88% as of October 2023, representing an improvement relative to -1% in 2021, but a slight increase relative to -0.58% in 2022. It is important to note that that by standard reporting practices globally, discrepancies of the 1% point and below are not reported. However, we believe that any gap must be addressed and remedied, and continually reviewed. Tracking our progress and working towards addressing the unexplained gaps remains a continuing focus for Aesop. The remediation strategy takes a holistic approach, looking into the policies and processes impacting rewards (for example, new hire rates, merit/promotion guidelines, and female retention), as well as a more consistent and monitored pay equity adjustment process. We can continue to address the pay gap during the annual pay review at Aesop, and we are proactively reviewing and addressing all pay gaps including gaps to living wage in each country. III. How is the UK Gender Pay Gap calculated? Per the methodology set out by the regulations, this report meets the requirements, as much as data allows, of The Gender Pay Gap Information Regulations 2017 and accurately reflects gender pay gaps at Aesop by comparing the hourly pay and annual bonuses received by our UK-based female and male employees.
For this report, we have used snapshot date of 5 April 2023 and have engaged Mercer, an independent management consulting firm, to analyse our data.
The gender pay gap is calculated as the difference between average hourly earnings (excluding overtime) of men and women as a proportion of men's average hourly earnings (excluding overtime). It is a measure across all jobs at Aesop UK, not of the difference in pay between men and women for doing the same job.
IV. What are the definitions of the figures calculated? UK gender pay gap regulations require reporting on six key figures. Below you will find an explanation of the difference between equal pay and the gender pay gap as well as definitions of the key figures we are required to report on.
Equal pay: Based on our values and in line with laws in the UK and around the world, we pay equal amounts to women and men who carry out the same jobs, similar work or work of equal value in the same location. The analysis is conducted by Mercer on an annual basis to ensure Aesop pay equitably, with any discrepancies rectified immediately.
Gender pay gap: This means any difference in the average (mean) pay of all women and all men we employ in the UK, taking into account all roles, salary levels and bonuses.
Mean gender pay gap: The mean (average) gender pay gap figure uses hourly pay of all full-pay employees to calculate the difference between the mean (average) hourly pay of men, and the mean (average) hourly pay of women.
Median gender pay gap: The difference between the middle pay rate (taking into account total pay in April 2022) of all women and men we employ in the UK
Mean gender bonus gap: The difference between the average bonuses we pay to women and men in the UK. We calculate this by dividing the total value of bonuses by the number of employees of each gender who receive bonuses.
Median gender bonus gap: The difference between the middle bonus rate we pay to women and men in the UK. We calculate this by finding the middle of our bonus range and dividing it by the total number of employees of each gender who receive bonuses.
Bonus gender proportions: The proportion of our female and male employees in the UK who receive bonuses.
Pay Quartiles: The proportion of our female and male employees in the UK in our lower, lower middle, upper middle and upper pay bands. Each pay band represents a quarter of our overall pay scale.
V. What are the results for Aesop?
When analysing our GPG results, we observe that our median gap increased from 3.4% (2022) to 20.4% (2023), whilst the mean gap decreased slightly from 33.2% (2022) to 30.5% (2023). This indicates that men, on average, earn more than women, however it is important that we look at the various factors driving this gap.
Below is a snapshot of the data:
Gender Pay Gap (GPG)
• Mean: 30.5%
• Median: 20.4%
Gender Bonus Gap (GBG)
• Proportion of males receiving bonus: 82.2%
• Proportion of females receiving bonus: 84%
• Mean: 78.2%
• Median: 27.5%
Quartiles
• Lower quartile: 18.8% male / 81.3% female
• Lower middle quartile: 27.7% male / 72.3% female
• Upper middle quartile: 29.5% male / 70.5% female
• Upper quartile: 38.9% male / 61.1% female
The information published is an accurate representation of Aesop’s Gender Pay Gap based on the data we had available at the time of reporting.
Sarah Jackson General Manager Human Resources
Download our UK Gender Pay Gap report here.