Be Fair: A qualitative Investigation of Pay Inequity Experiences

Abstract

This study explores the topic of pay inequity, with a particular focus on how it impacts on women working in the UK today. Theoretical and methodological gaps exist across the literature, which to date have focussed on quantitative approaches to hypothesis connected to (i) equity theory (Adams, 1965; Homans, 1958), (ii) the gender pay gap (Olson, 2013; Metcalf, 2009; Rubery, 2015) and (iii) equal pay law (The Equal Pay Act, 1970). This study seeks to address these gaps by taking a feminist and qualitative approach to the collection of narratives that describe the lived experience of female pay inequity victims. Semi-structured interviews are used to collect the rich narratives and unique perceptions of women who have experienced this phenomenon for themselves, and provides us with deep insights into the events, behaviours and perceptions that surround their experiences (Blaikie, 2007; Oakley, 1981). This paper provides justification for the methodological approach, and how it has been used to address the gaps in our knowledge that are preventing the theoretical advancement of the topic. As this study is currently in the data collection and analysis phase for a PhD project, no findings are presented in this paper.