PALATINATE Durham’s Official Student Newspaper celebrating 75 years
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Thursday 15th June 2023 | No. 863
www.palatinate.org.uk
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An Indigo farewell for Editor Charlotte
Profile chats to Max Fosh
Durham’s gender pay gap revealed Durham University say that “change is happening”
Becks Fleet News Editor
Last weekend’s Durham Regatta in full flow (Thomas Thomlinson)
University’s interim degree plans leave students in a state of limbo Daniel Hodgson, Emily Doughty and Ben Webb Editors-in-Chief and News Editor Many third years at Durham University have been left feeling unsure of their post-Congregation future, as there is no guarantee that all finalists will graduate in the coming weeks. An email sent to all third years in the University on 31st May, signed by Tony Fawcett, Pro-ViceChancellor of Education and Joe McGarry, President of Durham SU, detailed a proposed plan for the manner in which finalists will receive a classification at the end of their degree in light of the UCU marking and assessment boycott. In addition to interim degree classifications and transcripts
being provided depending on the number of credits a student has, it has since been communicated that progressing students who have an incomplete set of marks will be “pending”. Further explanations for finalists and continuing students are being communicated from the University on 20th June. Joe McGarry has since spoken to Palatinate and expressed his surprise at “how slow the University worked to come up with a mitigation process and how late they left to start it”. On Monday 12th June, the University sent emails to all years to confirm the date that their awards would be published. In their communication to continuing students, the University said that “no-one will be prevented from progressing solely as a result of the
marking and assessment boycott”. Alongside this, the 31st May email to finalists clarified that all students will be able to attend Summer Congregation Ceremonies as a celebratory event. However, all degrees will be conferred in absentia at a later date. It has caused a large degree of concern for some students, who are worried about how it will affect their future endeavours after university. Palatinate has spoken to students across multiple year groups about their fears. A third year English student said the 31st May announcement “added unnecessary stress to an already stressful time”. They went on to say the situation “was not good enough. It feels like there is room for such continued on page 4
Durham University’s most recent gender pay gap report – published annually online on the UK Government website – has revealed that the median hourly pay for women working at Durham University is 23.5% lower than the median hourly pay for men. This equates roughly to women earning 76p for every £1 earned by men. When using the mean rather than the median, the hourly gender pay gap is 21.1%. This is a fall of 1% from the 2021/22 academic year. The median pay gap is slightly increased from the previous report last year, which stated that the median hourly pay for women working at Durham University was 20.1% lower than the median hourly pay for men. However, it has fallen since the report prior to that, where the figure was 28.3%. Additionally, the report has revealed that men occupy nearly 60% of the upper hourly pay quarter – the 25% most highly paid staff at the University – and women occupy nearly 65% of the lowest hourly pay quarter. Since last year, the representation of women in the upper pay quartile has increased by 3%, and has reduced in the lower pay quartile by 2%. Durham’s hourly median gender pay gap is higher than some other universities. Both Oxford and Cambridge Universities have reported median gender pay gaps of under 15%, with Oxford stating that their hourly pay gap is 13.6% and Cambridge that theirs is 9.2%. The figure is also higher than other local universities, with Newcastle University’s median gender pay gap being 14.2%, and Northumbria University’s being 17.5%. Durham University has argued that this pay gap is due to the higher percentage of women employed in lower pay quartile roles compared to other universities, as the hourly pay gap figures take into account wages paid across the full organisation.
As the percentage of women in lower-paid roles is higher than at some other universities, the average pay for women is lower than the average pay for men. In response to this report, A Durham University spokesperson said: “Durham University is committed to promoting an inclusive and supportive environment for all our staff and students. This includes the University actively promoting equality in the workplace. “The University’s gender pay gap is mainly due to the structure of our workforce. Our college system means that we have more lower graded job roles than other universities of a similar size. And unlike many other universities, we only outsource a very small number of graded roles. “Closing the gender pay gap is not a quick and easy fix. It requires a meaningful, consistent, and sustained shift in what we do. The changes that we are making at Durham are authentic and deeprooted and will take time to make a difference. “But change is happening. We were one of the first Russell Group universities to permanently change our pay scale so all employees are paid above the ‘real living wage’. Female representation in the University’s lower pay quartiles reduced by 2% in the last year, while female representation in the upper pay quartile increased by 3%. “A comprehensive action plan has been developed that identifies steps being taken to help reduce the gender pay gap. This includes changes to our recruitment and selection processes and activities and greater transparency and benchmarking when making decisions on pay. “It is also important to recognise that the gender pay gap is not equivalent to equal pay. Equal pay is a legal requirement that men and women employees in similar roles must receive no less favourable terms and conditions, including pay. “Durham does not have an equal pay issue. We are not complacent on the gender pay gap and continue to work hard in this area.”