UK publishing staff share salaries to promote pay transparency

In the UK, a document inviting publishing staff to share their salaries is circulating in the industry, reports the Bookseller.

Nearly 900 staff have entered their salary, experience, ethnicity, sexual orientation and gender identity into the document, with the majority of respondents from large publishing houses in London.

The document’s circulation comes amid ongoing discussion in the UK about the link between low pay and lack of diversity in the industry.

In an opinion piece for the Bookseller on decolonising the publishing industry, Cassava Republic Press editorial assistant Layla Mohamed wrote that the ‘issue of salary is one of the largest barriers for entry for people of colour in this industry, particularly those from working class backgrounds’.

‘There is no value in encouraging people of colour to join an industry that they cannot afford to remain in, and this is why most diversity in the industry is limited to entry-level positions, and many rarely stay long enough to make the dent that is needed,’ Mohamed wrote.

Category: International news