My thoughts on the Gender Pay Gap after International Women's Day.

I thought today would be a good day to publish this, especially as all of last week including Sunday, brands jumped on the International Women's Day band wagon like banshees. Shouting out loud and proud across our social media feeds things like; "Woo, go women! We support women, look at the evidence of this on our Instagram post, go us- yay!" Followed by lighting up a cigar and giving themselves a great big pat on the back for acknowledging the day, to then be probably filed away and forgotten again, until next year.

You can't help but look on, wondering what systems they have in place to support the cause they care so much about. I mean, surely shouting their support of women from the roof tops, translates to the internal process they have with HR, where they hold yearly salary reviews?Behind the scenes are they really doing everything they can, to make sure the women in their organisations are given equal opportunities and pay as the men?

But it's not just all about the Pay Gap really is it? I've noticed over the years that it's a number of things. Like the Recognition Gap, where women are recognised for their accomplishments and viewed as future leaders, the Opportunity Gap where they are given opportunities to progress in the same way men are and last but not least the Conversation Gap. This ones the most important of all, because it's all about transparency between peers to openly discuss salaries. Something companies usually try to discourage, probably exactly for this very reason.

There's also something called the Motherhood Penalty, which is pretty absurd because women don't just become mothers, people become parents. If we also addressed the lack of paternity leave for dads and allowed men more time off with their families, then couples could make decisions about work based on their careers, rather than their gender.

But how can we address this? By creating the space to have honest conversations. Companies also taking it upon themselves to make sure they are supplying equal opportunities for both men and women, with yearly reviews based on progression and salary.

We can also take charge ourselves, by using our own voices to challenge the status quo and to champion others who may be struggling to raise their own. We can make it our own responsibility, to do the right thing, to speak up against inequality we experience and to be an ally.

Ask your employers to make sure you have enough diversity and inclusion in your team, because theres so much value in a work culture, when it's built around different perspectives. Everything feels much richer.

I always do what I can as a recruiter, to make sure companies are producing fair salary offers. Where the final figure is truly reflective of a candidates contribution and potential as a creative and a personality to have in their business, not their gender.

I also feel I have a responsibility to maintain trust in the industry and a duty of care with candidates when I'm putting them forward to jobs. Because of this I've stopped working with certain clients in the past, because they asked sexist questions at interview stage or openly showed gender based hiring biases.

So in summary for International Women's Day, let's not let gender equality be brushed back under the carpet now the days been and gone, lets pick up the baton and continue to run with it!