You may have heard recently that some familiar faces from the BBC are on a huge amount of money and more staggeringly, the male TV stars are on far more than highest paid female stars. For example, Chris Evans is paid between £2,200,000 - £2,249,999, he is the highest paid male ‘talent’ as the BBC calls them. And Claudia Winkleman earns between £450,000 - £500,000, that is a huge disparity. The BBC has long suffered from allegations about their stars not being paid equally to one another. It has only been after the BBC was compelled to publish these figures under the terms of its royal charter, have we seen the true figures.
It’s not just the BBC- it’s everywhere else
Equality is an issue that doesn’t just affect the BBC but affects other corporations and businesses around the country. This isn’t just about pay either- it’s about age, disability, gender, marital, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation and socio-economic disadvantage. Apprenticeships programmes are designed to be inclusive and comply with the principles of equality and diversity. They must show they take an active approach to removing barriers for people within minorities applying for an apprenticeship. Apprenticeships must ensure equality of access for those with a learning difficulty for example. Any legal restrictions that limit entry must be stated.
On the subject of the apprenticeship wage…
Pay for apprenticeships has recently been discussed by FE week claiming that there has been a rise in the proportion of apprentices being paid illegal wages. It says that ‘Nearly a fifth of apprentices at level two and level three are illegally paid less than the minimum wage, according to the government’s long-delayed apprenticeship pay survey.’
If you don't think you're being paid minimum wage talk to your training provider who can advise you on what to do
Apprentices around the country are working hard but are being paid below the minimum wage. But there could be other apprentices out there doing a similar job to you but being paid more, either the minimum wage or above. Is that fair?
Apprenticeship pay is something that is under contention at the moment. All apprentices, no matter of age, race etc. are paid what the employer is willing to pay. The disparity of pay within apprenticeships is how varied the pay can be between employers for doing the same job. You could apply to a Level 3 digital marketing course that is paying £500 per month and you could go to another employer that is willing to pay £1000 per month- it just depends on where you go.
