Gender Pay Gap Report
Big Bus Gender Pay Gap Report - 2023
Big Bus is committed to the principle of equality of opportunity and equal treatment for all colleagues, regardless of sex, or any other characteristics. While not mandated by law due to the scale of our operations, we have chosen to voluntarily disclose our gender pay gap report.
What is the Gender Pay Gap?
The gender pay gap indicates the difference in the average hourly earnings of men and women across an organisation, regardless of their roles or seniority. The figures are expressed as a percentage of the average male earnings.
The gender pay gap is different from equal pay. Equal pay deals with the pay difference between males and females who carry out the same or similar jobs but are being paid differently. Under the law, males and females must receive equal pay for: the same or broadly similar work; work rated as equivalent; or work of equal value.
How the mean pay gap is calculated
The mean gender pay gap looks at the mean average percentage difference in hourly pay of females as compared to males.
How the median pay gap is calculated
The median gender pay gap reflects the percentage difference in pay between the middle person in a ranking of highest to lowest paid females and males, respectively.
How the bonus pay gap is calculated
The bonus gap is calculated using actual bonuses paid to colleagues for the 12 months from 6th April 2022 to 5th April 2023. The mean bonus, median bonus and overall gap is calculated using the same formula as hourly pay.
Data Used
The snapshot for the data was 5th April 2023. It was collected and handled in line with Gov.uk guidelines.
Our Results
Understanding our Gender Pay Gap
There are many factors that influence the pay gap each year and our data shows that this year’s increase in the median data set is due to representation across key roles. The pay gap is heavily affected by the gender split across all roles, if we look specifically at the driver role which is in the upper quarter for pay, the split is 90 per cent male. This means more males have higher paid driver roles than females which tips the pay gap in favour of males. We are working to understand the barriers for females in entering our driver and senior manager roles.
Understanding our Bonus Gender Pay Gap
Under Gender Pay Gap reporting regulations, payments to our frontline customer service representatives and drivers who earn commission based on ticket sales are classified as a bonus and reflected in our results.
The majority of bonuses were paid out to the lower quartile roles this year, which typically have a higher male to female ratio. This is reflected in the difference between the mean and median bonus gender pay gaps, which are close on a mean average and significantly different when looking at the median.
Our Results on the 'snapshot' date of 5 April 2023:
Big Bus Tours
| Pay Gaps | 2023 | Change* |
| Mean Gender Pay Gap | 4.6% | +7.60% |
| Median Gender Pay Gap | -21.77% | +20.23% |
| Mean Bonus Gender Pay Gap | 0.85% | +22.85% |
| Median Bonus Gender Pay Gap | -322.99% | -322.99% |
*Change compared to the 2022/23 Gender Pay Gap Report figure.
Proportion of males and females in each pay quartile
| Quartile | Males | Females |
| Upper Quartile | 65.31% | 34.69% |
| Upper Middle Quartile | 68.00% | 32.00% |
| Lower Middle Quartile | 84.00% | 16.00% |
| Lower Quartile | 82.00% | 18.00% |
Proportion of males and females with a bonus
| Males | Females |
| 81.00% | 68.00% |
Benchmarking our Gender Pay Gap
Whilst the gender pay gaps are calculated by mean and median average it is the median figures that are used for comparison across organisations, industries and the UK. The table below shows how the median pay gaps at Big Bus compare to the UK economy as a whole, London as a geographic region and our sector of the economy.
| Big Bus Tours | UK Economy* | London (Region)* | Leisure & Travel (Sector)* | |
| Median Gender Pay Gap | -21.77% | 8.3% | 11.2% | 5.9% |
| Median Bonus Gender Pay Gap | -322.99% | 15.2% | n/a | n/a |
*Benchmarked figures are from 2022; Office for National Statistics.
This comparison paints a flattering picture of the median gender pay gaps, however context is important to understand the full picture behind the numbers.
The figures reported as Big Bus Tours includes all UK-based colleagues of our Big Bus London operational function (our London tour provider) and our Central Support Office (professional shared services). Each function operates separately, and utilises different pay structures and different bonus schemes. When combined, this skews the findings and is not an accurate representation of either function.
Below we have calculated the gender pay gap figures for Big Bus London and our Central Support Office separately.
Big Bus London: Pay Gaps
| Pay Gaps | 2023 |
| Mean Gender Pay Gap | -2.73% |
| Median Gender Pay Gap | 10.80% |
| Mean Bonus Gender Pay Gap | -48.18% |
| Median Bonus Gender Pay Gap | -305.82% |
Big Bus London: Proportion of males and females in each pay quartile
| Quartile | Males | Females |
| Upper Quartile | 80% | 20% |
| Upper Middle Quartile | 94.44% | 5.56% |
| Lower Middle Quartile | 83.33% | 16.67% |
| Lower Quartile | 75% | 25% |
Big Bus London: Proportion of males and females with a bonus
| Males | Females |
| 90.00% | 75.00% |
Big Bus Central Support Office: Pay Gaps
| Pay Gaps | 2023 |
| Mean Gender Pay Gap | 49.42% |
| Median Gender Pay Gap | 24.31% |
| Mean Bonus Gender Pay Gap | 72.32% |
| Median Bonus Gender Pay Gap | 27.29% |
Big Bus Central Support Office: Proportion of males and females in each pay quartile
| Quartile | Males | Females |
| Upper Quartile | 85.71% | 14.29% |
| Upper Middle Quartile | 42.86% | 57.14% |
| Lower Middle Quartile | 57.14% | 42.86% |
| Lower Quartile | 28.57% | 74.43% |
Big Bus Central Support Office: Proportion of males and females with a bonus
| Males | Females |
| 47% | 62% |
Areas for Further Development
- Benchmarking
- Recruitment & Succession Planning
- Flexible Working
- Females in Upper Quartile