The ‘Counting the cost: Understanding your ethnicity pay gap' guide explains legal frameworks; how to improve data to better recognise and tackle ethnicity pay gaps; and practical strategies to help minimise this form of inequality. 

The guide is published one year after NHS England's first Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Improvement Plan, which called on NHS organisations to understand pay gaps by protected characteristic and put in place an improvement plan. This will be tracked and monitored by NHS boards across gender (by 2024), disability (by 2025), and other protected characteristics (by 2026). 

The guide also includes examples from organisations whose boards have begun to implement strategies to address their pay gaps, including the use of future Very Senior Manager' programmes to support progression into senior roles, taskforces designed to tackle racism in the workplace with clear executive leadership, and talent management frameworks to ensure all staff have opportunities to explore their aspirations and career development. 

In addition, the guide also includes a list of practical questions organisations can use to interrogate their own practices, and better understand the ethnicity pay gap within their institution. Case studies include those provided by Cambridgeshire County Council, Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, and Barts Health NHS Trust.

The guide's foreword is provided by Dianne Greyson, founder of the #EthnicityPayGap campaign.

Saffron Cordery, deputy chief executive at NHS Providers, said: 'We know that the legal frameworks surrounding the ethnicity pay gap are shifting, but the issue itself is long-standing. This is why our guide outlining the impact of the ethnicity pay gap and practical strategies to address it is crucial.

She added: ‘Our guide aims to maintain momentum on this issue and bolster the efforts of NHS organisations across England. Whilst tackling the pay gap is only one piece of the puzzle when it comes to creating fair and inclusive workplaces, it is an urgent priority.'

Andrew Davison, head of employment at Hempsons, said: ‘We hope that this guidance will go some way towards supporting the NHS to keep working towards its goal of inclusive and equitable workplace pay.'

The guide can be viewed here.