Architectures of Inequality: Gender Pay Inequity and Britain’s Finance Sector

by Rachel Verdin

The gender pay gap is economically irrational and yet stubbornly persistent. Focusing on the UK finance industry which is known for its gender pay disparity, this book explores the initiatives to fix gendered inequities in the workplace. Rachel Verdin crafts a unique framework, weaving extensive organizational data with women's lived experiences. Interviews uncover gaps in pay transparency, obstacles hindering workplace policies and the factors that are stalling progress for the future. This is an invaluable resource that offers key insights into gender equality and EDI measures shaped by legal regulations as well as corporate-driven initiatives.

224 pages, Hardcover

Published July 23, 2024

Reviews

[Tara Brabazon · Rating 4 out of 5]

A remarkable book that had its origins in a PhD. This book explores how inequality 'happens' when reviewing gender and pay.

With a focus on banking and finance, Verdin locates, "sexism in the city." That is not a surprise, but there is a fascinating strand of argument where she argues that there is too much attention on the representation of women, rather than the gendered inequality of pay.

The lived experience of women confronting inequality punctuates the book. Encircling the Global Financial Crisis and its aftermath, this book shows that inequality is not accidental or arbitrary. It has an architecture.