Transparency data

DWP: gender pay gap report for 2025

Published 16 December 2025

Executive Summary 

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has prepared this report as part of the legal requirement for public authorities to publish their Gender Pay Gap (GPG) on an annual basis.  

In March 2025: 

• DWP’s mean ordinary GPG: 4.2% (decreased by 0.6 percentage points (ppt) since 2024)
• DWP’s median ordinary GPG: 0.0% (unchanged since 2024)
• DWP’s mean bonus GPG: 6.3% (decreased by 2.5 ppt since 2024)
• DWP’s median bonus GPG: 1.8% (decreased by 10.7 ppt since 2024) 

DWP is one of the largest government departments with a total headcount of 93,803 as of 31 March 2025. In this year’s report, 93,471 individuals are included in the ordinary pay gap figures and 94,814 individuals are included in the bonus gap figures, as per the government guidance on scope.  

There is a positive story for DWP this year, with many of the headline figures improving: 

• The DWP continues to perform favourably when compared to the wider Civil Service, where the overall ordinary mean GPG is 6.9%.
• DWP also compares favourably with the mean bonus GPG for the Civil Service of 22.5%, and the median bonus GPG of 14.3%.

Women represent 62.4% of the DWP workforce and we have continued to make positive progress in female representation at grades Senior Executive Officer (SEO) and Grade 7 (G7). At Grade 6 (G6), Senior Civil Servant Grade 1 (SCS1) and Senior Civil Servant Grade 2 (SCS2) there were small decreases in female representation in 2025. However, the percentage of women who are in grades SEO to Senior Civil Servant increased by 0.9 ppt to 9.0% this year.

Mean ordinary GPG (decreased by 0.6 ppt)

Our mean gender pay gap has decreased due to changes in our grade distribution, female representation within each grade and changes to mean salaries due to pay awards.  

Median ordinary GPG (unchanged)

The median pay gap remains at 0.0%. This is primarily due to the existence of an Executive Officer (EO) grade spot rate (rather than a pay scale with a minimum and maximum rate of pay per grade and pay zone, a spot rate means that everyone within the same grade and pay zone is on the same rate of pay).  As of March 2025, 51% of all men and 54% of women were at EO grade and most were on the spot rate. As a result, the median employee fell within the EO range for both genders.  

Mean bonus GPG (decreased by 2.5 ppt)

There has been a notable decrease in the mean bonus pay gap, mainly due to an improvement to our in year bonus gap in delegated grades where there is a greater proportion of women.   

Median bonus GPG (decreased by 10.7 ppt)

The median bonus gap is heavily influenced by End of Year bonuses, which vary by grade and are pro-rated for part-time employees, who are more likely to be women. This year, staff in grades EO to Grade 6 were awarded the same End of Year bonus amount and this led to a narrower median bonus pay gap than in the previous year. The large median bonus pay gap seen in the previous year, 2024-2025, was due to a higher End of Year bonus amount being awarded to grades Administrative Assistant (AA) to EO, where women have higher grade representation and have a lower average Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) than in other grades, in comparison to men.  

Overall, we are confident that our pay strategy is non-discriminatory in its design. Our analysis demonstrates the pay gap to be largely attributed to the grade distribution of the workforce, specifically lower representation of women in higher grades. The GPG will continue to be a key consideration as we develop our future reward strategy.

1. Introduction

Organisations with 250 or more employees are required to report annually on their gender pay gap. Government departments are covered by the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties and Public Authorities) Regulations 2017 which came into force on 31 March 2017. These regulations underpin the Public Sector Equality Duty and require relevant organisations to publish their gender pay gap annually.  

This includes: 

• the mean and median ordinary gender pay gaps
• the mean and median gender bonus gaps
• the proportion of men and women who received bonuses 
• the proportions of men and women employees in each pay quartile 

For 2024 to 2025, the Gender Pay Gap figures were published in the Annual Civil Service Employment Survey (ACSES) on 30 July 2025. These figures provide an overall picture across government for the reporting period 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025. This report fulfils DWP’s reporting requirements and sets out the actions we are taking in relation to addressing the gender pay gap and improving gender parity. This information is published on gov.uk and the Government Equality Office (GEO) portal. Where any percentage figures in this report do not add to 100%, this is due to rounding.

DWP is committed to the fair treatment and reward of all staff irrespective of gender, and ensuring the department is an inclusive place where people can be at their best. Our goal is to ensure that these commitments, reinforced by our Values, are embedded in day to day working practices with all our customers, colleagues and partners. As an employer, DWP is committed to the Civil Service ambition to have a truly diverse workforce which is representative of the communities that we serve. Our Diversity and Inclusion objectives are aligned with the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy: 2022 to 2025. 

We continue to set ourselves challenging objectives designed to ensure that we have a diverse workforce. In relation to gender, these include:

• growing and supporting our internal pipeline of women progressing through the grades

• monitoring recruitment outcomes at each grade and each stage of the recruitment process

• maintaining gender parity in our Senior Civil Service (SCS) workforce

DWP’s total headcount (staff in post) on the 31 March 2025 was 93,803 employees. This represents all paid employees. For the bonus gap, 94,814 employees were identified as ’relevant employees’ and ’full pay relevant employees’, as set out in the regulations, and included in the GPG calculations for the mean and median ordinary pay gap.

DWP uses the Civil Service grading system. DWP’s Delegated Grades are Administrative Assistant (AA), Administrative Officer (AO), Executive Officer (EO), Higher Executive Officer (HEO), Senior Executive Officer (SEO), Grade 7, Grade 6. DWP’s Senior Civil Service (SCS) grades are SCS1, SCS2, SCS3, and Permanent Secretary. Grades are determined by the level of responsibility that employees have in their job roles. Except for SCS, each grade has a set National, and two London pay ranges (with some other location-based pay differences), with higher grades receiving higher salaries.

2. Gender pay gap report

The ordinary mean and median GPG shows the difference between the average hourly pay for all men and women in a workforce. If a workforce has a particularly large gender pay gap, this can be an indication of issues to address, and the individual GPG calculations (mean and median ordinary and bonus pay gaps) may help to identify what those issues are.  

GPG is different from equal pay. Equal pay deals with the pay differences between men and women who conduct the same jobs, similar jobs, or work of equal value. It is unlawful to pay people unequally because they are a man or a woman. 

To ensure a consistent methodology over time and across government, each full-pay relevant employee’s hourly rate of pay has been determined using full-time equivalent salaries and contracted weekly hours. Permanent and pensionable allowances, non-consolidated performance payments, and salary sacrifice deductions are all incorporated.

2.1 DWP’s 2025 GPG figures – pay and bonus gaps (calculated as per statutory guidance)

The overall mean and median hourly difference in pay is £0.76 and £0.00 respectively.

Ordinary Pay gap

Mean, 4.2%

Median, 0.0%

Bonus gap

Mean, 6.3%

Median, 1.8%

2.2 Percentage of males and females receiving a bonus in 2025

The DWP awards both ‘in year’ and ‘end of year’ non-consolidated bonuses. In the financial year 2024 to 2025, to be eligible for DWP’s end of year non-consolidated award, employees had to:  

• be in post on both 31 March 2025 and 1 July 2025 
• not be undergoing formal poor performance action
• have 60 days of actual performance within the performance year (exceptions to this are where the absence is due to maternity, paternity, adoption or sickness absence)

Percentage of individuals receiving a bonus

Men, 91.5%

Women, 93.4%

2.3 Gender distribution within each pay quartile

DWP’s workforce is consists of significantly more women (62%) than men (38%) however, women are more likely to be at lower grades and on lower pay than men.

Percentage of DWP Males and Females (AA to SCS) in each Pay Quartile, 2025	Women %	Men %
Lower quartile	64.7%	35.3%
Lower middle quartile	63.1%	36.9%
Upper middle quartile	63.2%	36.8%
Upper quartile	58.6%	41.4%
All	62.4%	37.6%

The lower middle and upper middle quartiles are similar to the overall gender composition of the department. Women, however, are over-represented in the lower quartile and underrepresented in the upper quartile where they make up less than 60% of individuals in that grade.

2.4 Workforce analysis

Gender composition of workforce by grade

Women are under-represented at higher grades and slightly over-represented at lower grades. 80% of all women in the workforce occupy grades AA to EO, compared to just below 75% of men. Men are almost twice as likely to fulfil Grade 6 and 7 positions than women, which plays a significant role in driving the ordinary mean gender pay gap.

Grade distribution of workforce by gender

Grade (decreasing seniority)	Number of men	(% of men workforce)	Number of women	(% of women workforce)	% of women in the grade
Senior Civil Servant (SCS)	143	(0.4%)	176	(0.3%)	55.2%
Grade 6/7	2,452	(7.0%)	2,397	(4.1%)	49.4%
SEO/HEO	6,218	(17.6%)	9,156	(15.6%)	59.6%
EO	18,094	(51.3%)	31,476	(53.8%)	63.5%
AA/AO	8,348	(23.7%)	15,343	(26.2%)	64.8%
Total	35,255	(100.0%)	58,548	(100.0%)	62.4%

3. Analysis of pay gap

Ordinary mean pay gap

2021, 4.2%

2022, 5.9%

2023, 5.5%

2024, 4.8%

2025, 4.2%

The primary reason for the existence of DWP’s mean pay gap is the different proportions of men and women in different grades. 

With regards to the change in our gap this year, aside from joiners and leavers this mainly is a result of changes to mean salaries due to pay awards, changes to grade distribution and workforce structure changes having a positive impact.

3.1 Delegated pay award 2024 impact

In the 2024 pay award, when looking at the consolidated uplifts awarded to males and females at individual grades, there is no significant difference for grades AA to HEO. However, females at grades SEO to G6 have a slightly higher uplift than their male counterparts. The band minima increase has an effect on reducing the mean pay gap by benefitting those particularly in bands SEO to G6, where there is a much greater proportion of women on band minima in those grades with a longer pay band.     

Despite there being comparatively lower levels of female staff at grades SEO and G7, when we look at the average consolidated uplifts across the whole AA to G6 population, the differences between gender are minimal (5.02% for females versus 5.03% for males).

3.2 Senior civil servants

Of the 10 individuals that make up DWP’s Executive Team (SCS3), 9 are women. Compared to 2023 to 2024 there has been a greater proportion of women in the upper quartiles of the SCS1 and SCS2 pay band, which has positively impacted the ordinary mean gap. The SCS only mean ordinary pay gap has decreased by 4.9 ppt. In 2024 a larger proportion of new entrants to SCS1 in DWP were women (28 of 42 of those new to this grade in DWP), accounting for around 17% of all women in SCS. Since those new to SCS1 are paid less than the average for all SCS, this contributed to a larger overall SCS GPG. This year recruitment at SCS grades has been more even. We would expect SCS averages to fluctuate more than overall figures due to the low numbers of SCS staff.

3.3 Workforce structure changes

The mean GPG is affected by changes to the proportion of men and women staff in higher grades.  

This year, the proportion of females in grades SEO to SCS increased by 0.9 ppt, from 8.1% at 2024 to 9.0% in 2025. The proportion of males in these grades increased by 0.6 ppt, from 12.9% to 13.5%. This is a difference of 0.3 ppt between gender proportion changes, in favour of female representation in these grades.   

While men are still more likely to be in the grades SEO to SCS, the larger increase for female representation in these grades has had a positive impact in the narrowing of the ordinary mean GPG for 2025.

Proportion of DWP women and men in grades SEO and above

Year	% of all DWP women in grades SEO & above	% of all DWP men in grades SEO & above
2025	9.0% (increased by 0.9 ppt)	13.5% (increased by 0.6 ppt)
2024	8.1%	12.9%
2023	7.5%	12.8%
2022	6.2%	11.3%

3.4 Gender Pay Gap by grade grouping

As the proportion of staff at higher grades increases, they move into grades with longer pay ranges (rather than spot rates). This means that there is a greater potential difference in the rates of pay paid to men and women, which in turn can increase the mean GPG. However, the decreasing gap between the proportion of women and men in higher grades works in the opposite direction to reduce the GPG.  

This is reflected in the table below, where our grades with longer pay bands (SEO to G6 and SCS) have wider gaps than AA to HEO. The large GPG at SCS grades in 2024 was due to a higher proportion of newly recruited or promoted SCS1 colleagues being women and therefore being on lower than average SCS salaries. A more even recruitment this year has led to a narrowing of the GPG for SCS.

Grade	AA to SCS	AA to HEO	SEO to Grade 6	SCS
2025 Mean Pay Gap	4.2%	0.3%	4.4%	3.0%
2024 Mean Pay Gap	4.8%	0.5%	4.9%	7.9%
% Change in ppt	-0.6	-0.2	-0.5	-4.9

3.5 Impact of different terms and conditions

Previously, differences in DWP Terms and Conditions have affected our gender pay gap, particularly where employees voluntarily remained on legacy terms and conditions (and rates of pay), following the introduction of the Employee Deal (ED) Collective Agreement (and rates of pay) in 2016.

We have analysed the mean GPG for colleagues on DWP’s ED terms and conditions (T&Cs), compared with the mean GPG for employees that remain on DWP’s legacy T&Cs, this has a very limited impact on the overall gap.

Excluding employees that moved under Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations (TUPE), from calculations would reduce the pay gap to 3.7% (from 4.2%).

3.6 Median ordinary GPG (unchanged)

The median pay gap remains at 0%. This is primarily due to the existence of an EO spot rate. Of the whole DWP population as of March 2025, 51.3% of men and 53.8% of women were at EO grade and most were on the spot rate. This means the median for both genders fell within the EO range, resulting in a zero gap.

4. Analysis of the bonus gap

DWP continues to make both in year and end of year performance awards. The significant majority of DWP’s performance bonus awards were paid as end of year awards and were pro-rated for part-time employees. Unlike the ordinary pay gap, in the calculation of the bonus pay gap, these pro-rated payments are not converted into full-time equivalents, in line with calculation requirements. End of year awards are paid at set values by grade.

	2022	2023	2024	2025
Mean	14.6%	11.9%	8.8%	6.3%
Median	14.7%	10.1%	12.5%	1.8%

4.1 End of Year - delegated

In the July DWP 2024 pay award, whilst colleagues at EO and above received a £100 (pro rata) end of year award, those at AA and AO grades received, respectively, £275 and £300. This has had a positive impact on the bonus GPG as women are more represented in the AO and AA grades than men. Small changes in working hours also have had a positive impact on the bonus GPG where, for staff included in bonus calculations, between March 2024 and March 2025 the proportion of women working full time increased by 0.5pp while that for men decreased by 0.1 ppt. The median end of year only bonus gap is now 6.6% compared to 7.2% last year.

In 2025, the median end of year bonus for both men and woman in delegated grades was £100, leading to the delegated grades end of year bonus GPG being 0.0% compared to 4.0% the year before. Changes in the median end of year bonus gap are a feature of how the bonus are distributed in each year. In 2023 to 2024, awards were highest for AA and AO colleagues and lower for those in the grades HEO and above meaning the median fell at the full time EO level for men but slightly below the full time EO level for women, since there are higher proportions of women than men working part-time. This year, the equal amount end of year bonus for colleagues in grades EO to Grade 6, which, combined account for 74% of women and 76% of men in delegated grades, lead to the median end of year bonus GPG being 0%.

As is common practice across many organisations, DWP’s non-consolidated bonus end of year payments are pro-rated in accordance with the number of hours worked by each employee and length of service within the performance year. Within DWP as of 31st March 2025, 44% of women who are included in bonus calculations worked part time compared to 14% of men. As a result, women appear to receive disproportionately lower bonuses than men, but this is largely attributable to a higher proportion of women working part-time. The calculation for the bonus pay gap, which uses actual values received rather than full time equivalent values, means we will have a bonus pay gap which will fluctuate according to the number of part-time employees, most of whom (84%) are women.

4.2 In year - delegated grades

The use of cash and voucher bonuses varies each year, both in terms of the number of awards given and the value of those awards. This can lead to large variations when comparing one year’s bonus gap to another. 

The mean in year cash bonus gap in 2025 for delegated grades was 4.4% which closely aligns to the gap of 4.9% for all payments in the same year. 62.9% of delegated staff receiving an in year bonus were women, but those same women only received 61.4% of the bonus pot. 

In year recognition payments include both cash payments and vouchers (which are not pro-rated). The gap in the mean value of cash awards for men and women has reduced, from 3.5% in the previous year to 2.3%, a change of 1.2 ppt.  

In 2025, the mean in year bonus amount was £228 for men and £223 for women (compared to £221 for men and £214 for women in 2024).

4.3 Senior civil servants

Both in year and end of year non-consolidated award payments for SCS employees have an impact on the bonus gaps. The GPG non-consolidated award for colleagues at SCS grades has fallen for the second consecutive year.  

Whilst SCS males continue to receive higher bonus payments when compared to females, there has been an improvement this year, with the mean bonus gap for SCS falling by 1.3 ppt to 10.2% in 2025. This change is mainly due to a larger increase for women in end of year bonus amounts, than for men between 2024 and 2025, especially at grade SCS1. SCS1 accounts for over 77% off all SCS staff, and more than 57% of SCS1 are women.

5. Targeted action to reduce and close the gender pay gap and support colleagues going through menopause

5.1 Recruitment, retention and developing a diverse workforce

From 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2025, over 95% of all recruitment campaigns were advertised externally, 4% advertised across government, and less than 1% advertised internally in DWP. 

Utilisation of ‘name-anonymised’ recruitment for all delegated grades supports diversity and a level playing field in the assessment process. 

DWP encourages diverse representation of people from different backgrounds and identities on selection panels across all grades.   

We’ve embedded a ‘Questions in Advance’ interview approach to reduce barriers that could impact candidates who have had time out of the workplace or have lower confidence levels in a traditional interview situation. 

Targeted work on addressing diversity during attraction and recruitment is being undertaken. This includes the use of inclusive language in recruitment materials, monitoring of campaigns, the use of specialist job boards and advertising with all working patterns available, where business needs support. 

We promote that we are a Carer Confident organisation, with Ambassador status, recognising the comprehensive and advanced support in place as an employer for working carers. 

Since 2018 DWP has been committed to achieving 50% on-flow of women (new recruits or promotions) into SCS, cementing our commitment to reaching gender pay parity. At March 2025 55% of those in SCS positions were women.

5.2 Progression and building a diverse talent pipeline

DWP has appointed Director General-level Diversity Champions for Gender, Race, Disability, LGBT, and Social Mobility. These champions lead regular steering group meetings to drive progress and accountability. A range of initiatives and actions are underway, aligned to agreed priorities - including the development, review, and refinement of the 3-year Gender Strategy and Action Plan, informed by data-driven, intersectional analysis. 

Building insight on Gender Pay Gap (GPG) data through: 

• integrating GPG data into stakeholder dashboards – supporting targeted awareness and action in areas where the gender pay gap is more pronounced

• enhancing HR capability in GPG data analysis - through focused upskilling for HR professionals and key stakeholders, enabling the interpretation of data and development of evidence-based action plans at a local level

Supporting Learning, Development and Wellbeing

In 2024 to 2025, 388 women registered and participated in the DOD’s Workshop’s Women into Leadership, Ethnic Minorities into Leadership and Unlocking SCS workshops. With 88 digital apprenticeship roles being offered. 

Crossing Thresholds is a 12-month sponsorship scheme to support women’s progression for 30 women across DWP have been sponsored between May 2024 and 2025 and we continue to run Cultivating Your Leadership Workshops. 

The Women’s Network have led a series of L&D development events including progression and success profiles. In 2025 they launched their Women’s Health Hub which provides information on health conditions and addresses topics that affect women, in areas such as breastfeeding at work and endometriosis. 

The Men’s Network provide supportive safe spaces for men to come together to share their experiences and insights through their regular ‘Man Down’ sessions and recently launched ‘Dads United’ sessions. They have led a series of events to raises awareness of conditions that affect men’s health. 

Supporting Colleagues Through Menopause at DWP 

Women represent 62% of DWP’s workforce, with 30% aged between 45 and 55. We are committed to using data-driven approaches to inform targeted actions and interventions that support colleagues experiencing menopause. 

Key initiatives include: 

• The Menopause Network – offering peer support, raising awareness, and creating a safe space for colleagues to connect and share experiences

• Resources for Staff and Managers – including dedicated policies, toolkits, and awareness materials to foster understanding and support across the organisation

• Menopause Workplace Pledge – we are proud signatories, reinforcing our commitment to creating an inclusive and supportive working environment

• Colleague Survey – designed to understand the impact of menopause in the workplace. Insights from this data inform ongoing actions, helping to address factors contributing to the gender pay gap

5.3 Reward strategy

DWP is committed to a reward strategy that is inclusive, and to take steps to reduce pay disparity within our organisation.

The DWP consolidated pay award for 2024, applied from 1 July 24, provided an average increase of 5.02% with at least 5% to employees in grades AO to HEO with targeted increases to analysts to address anomalies in pay scales. The higher headline award for all lower graded employees was prioritised over moving towards spot rates for HEO. This had a positive effect on reducing the mean pay gap as 80% of staff are in these lower grades, which also have a higher proportion of women. 

The non-consolidated award provided greater amounts to the lowest paid (£275 to AO, £350 grade AO and £100 to other grades) which had a positive effect on the pay gap due to higher representation by women.  An increase in women working full time hours also slightly decreased the gap, as the bonus was not pro-rated for these women.  

Greater increases were awarded in 2024 to SEO and G7 employees on band minima, to raise competitiveness of those bands. The reduction in length of the pay scale positively benefitted the mean pay gap (in grades HEO to G6), due to more males being in higher pay quartiles and in the grades overall.  

Going forward, we will continue to review our reward strategy and the findings from equality analysis will feed into that review.

5.4 Career paths

We have a range of ongoing actions and initiatives in place, which includes: 

• colleagues at all grades having access to staff networks to support them throughout their careers and progression

• Shadow Board opportunities for colleagues to inform and influence senior decision-making and increase individuals’ exposure and experience

• active sponsorship and mentoring to increase visibility and advocacy and support development needs

5.5 Promoting a family friendly DWP

Supporting Colleagues with Caring Responsibilities

We are committed to promoting a healthy work-life balance through a range of flexible working options, including hybrid working, job-sharing, and part-time roles. Our newly introduced Kinship Care information hub further strengthens support for employees with differing caring arrangements. 

Awareness and support for carers is embedded across all our HR policies. This commitment is reinforced by DWP’s membership in the Employers for Carers forum and our achievement of silver standard accreditation as a Kinship Friendly Employer.

Promoting Flexibility Through Shared Parental Leave

We offer Shared Parental Leave (SPL) to give parents greater flexibility in how they share time off following the birth or adoption of a child. Across the department, we actively encourage and support a Shared Parental Leave policy that goes beyond statutory requirements, helping families balance work and caring responsibilities more effectively.

6. Declaration

We confirm that data reported by DWP is accurate and has been calculated according to the requirements and methodology set out in the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties and Public Authorities) Regulations 2017. 

People and Capability Director-General: Julie Blomley  

DWP Permanent Secretary: Peter Schofield