The figures at some levels surprise me, while at others, they really don’t. The issue is at the top of the industry when we reach salaries of £60,000 and above.

We have always known that at the very senior C-suite or board level, there are historically more men at the top. This is the "glass ceiling"; women are not always being given these opportunities, while some choose to not return after starting families.

So it is extremely disheartening, and very disappointing, that when women do reach the £60,000-plus level, there is a massive disparity between how much they can expect to earn, and how much their male counterparts are likely to take home.

To recap, our latest gender pay data shows the gap grew to 13.8% in 2024, which is near the 14.15% we had in 2019.

The figures also showed that in 2024, men in travel’s highest-paid jobs were taking home average salaries of £83,227 – nearly a quarter (23.81%) more than their female counterparts, whose average salaries ran to £65,521.

There remain gaps too among lower pay categories, which in travel are staffed disproportionally by women.

In my personal experience, women have to fight harder to prove themselves and to get to the top because some employers still feel some women will have families to look after and may not give the role their 100% commitment.

We have some amazing women in very senior roles in the travel industry, so it is disappointing to see this disparity exists.

It doesn’t happen often, but I have heard on a few occasions from senior women in our industry who have found their male equivalent earns more than them.

This even happened to me many years ago when I discovered a male colleague at the same level as me was earning considerably more – I mentioned it to my seniors and it was quickly resolved.

But how can we know what we don’t know? Women are only going to know if they are being underpaid if it is brought to their attention or highlighted to them.
Organisations with 250 or more employees must legally reveal their gender pay gap stats, but smaller ones do not.

To move forward, we really have to highlight this issue and make it an important talking point. We have to empower women to have confidence in their own ability and to approach their employer or HR about it. It is probably going on more than we realise.

There are many, many companies in the travel industry with headcounts of less than 250. If these companies want to highlight and tackle this issue, they should start doing internal surveys and produce their own findings.

While it may be a legal requirement for larger companies to look at their gender pay stats, there is nothing stopping smaller companies doing the same.

If they want to be an employer of choice, have a strong employer brand and a reputation as a good company to work for, this is the sort of thing they should be looking to do.

It might initially cause issues to their bottom line and payroll, but surely they want to be fair to their staff and give them every reason to be loyal to their company?

Barbara Kolosinska is co-owner and managing director of C&M Travel Recruitment.