The Transgender Pay Gap: A Case for Trans-Inclusive Gender Pay Gay Reports

The gender pay gap is commonly defined as the difference in earnings where men earn more than women. Yet, this definition overlooks the significance of transphobic discrimination in explaining discrepancies in earnings. Transphobia is the discrimination against transgender people and limiting of gender to two categories (man and woman) based on two sexes (male and female). For example, many of those who come out as transgender risk experiencing violence and hostility at work or even losing their job, thus often enter lesser-paid roles as a result. This experience is neglected by gender pay gap discourses that limit their understandings of 'gender' as merely differences between men and women. This includes the UK Government's own gender pay gap policies, despite the Government having recognised the existence of transgender and non-binary people in other aspects of policy. Non-binary people fall under the umbrella term of transgender, and are usually people that do not identify as man nor woman. The fact that the Government has recognised the existence of these people that are outside of the binary of men and women in other areas of policies raises the question of why these people are not included in gender pay gap policy. For, if it really were a 'gender' pay gap, why are all aspects of gender identity not included?
Since 2018, employers with over 250 employees are required to publish reports outlining gendered differences in earnings. Gender pay gap reports include information on hourly wage comparisons and the proportion of women in each pay quarter. However, because employers must categorise employees as either 'man' or 'woman' as instructed by the Government, data on the transgender pay gap is scarce. My proposed research seeks to address the exclusion of transgender employees (transgender men and women and non-binary people) to make an original contribution to the literature, as there are no studies that challenge trans-exclusion in gender pay gap discourses. This project seeks to propose trans-inclusive policy changes, demonstrating a potential to lead to legal reform that would highlight transgender people's economic disadvantage. Thus, my project aims to:
1. Explore transgender people's experiences of employment.
2. Identify the factors that contribute to the transgender pay gap.
3. Map out public understandings of the gender pay gap and gender identities/transgender experience.
4. Identify the role transphobic values have in public understandings of the gender pay gap.
5. Develop trans-inclusive gender pay gay reports.
In order to complete Aims 1 and 2, I will interview 30 transgender people to understand whether their experiences of employment, hiring, promotion and the workplace are defined by discrimination. To complete Aim 3, I will conduct an online, standardised survey of 100 members of the general public of all gender identities. This survey will be split into two sections. Participants will first be questioned on what the gap is, its causes and how it can be closed. Secondly, I will test their knowledge of gender identities and understanding of transgender experience. This will allow me to contrast participants' understandings of 'gender' in each section. I predict gender will first be defined as the differences between men and women, while responses from section 2 will demonstrate a much wider understanding of gender. Comparing understandings of 'gender' between the two sections, and analysing extended answers from the surveys using critical discourse analysis will allow me to complete Aim 4. Finally, to complete Aim 5, I will identify issues with current methods of recording employees' gender in terms of how and when it is recorded and who records what information, and suggest trans-inclusive alternatives. I will then receive feedback from two local MPs (from the governing and opposition parties) and a representative from the Government Equalities Office on the practicality of two alternative models.