The best and worst jobs for women revealed in gender pay gap table – and how you could earn £8k more than men

The Sun

01-05-2025

EVEN in 2025 millions of women around the world are still earning less than men - but there are some jobs where you can get paid MORE.
The Sun has analysed ONS data to reveal the top jobs for women as well as the worst. Use our tool below to search.
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The tool compares typical hourly rates across more than 400 occupations.
Women earn more than men in over 80 categories but the majority of roles still see men taking home higher pay.
According to the ONS, full-time female employees earned 7% less than men in 2024, whereas part-time female workers earned 3% more than their male counterparts.
Today, the average female employee, whether working full-time or part-time, earns £17.33 an hour, compared to £18.54 for the average male employee.
Since 2018, large employers have been legally required to publish data on their gender pay gaps, shining a spotlight on inequalities in the workplace.
The data looks at the average hourly earnings across jobs in the UK, however, it doesn't reflect the pay gap between men and women doing the same job with similar skills and experience.
Best industries for female workers
But it's not all doom and gloom for women - there are jobs where you can get paid more and it's not just in roles which are stereotypically performed by females.
Female power plant workers earn a whopping 25% more, with hourly pay averaging £23.68 compared to £18.93.
According to the ONS, the average Brit works around 36.5 hours per week.
When factoring in bank holidays and the statutory 5.6 weeks of annual leave, this amounts to roughly 1,757 working hours per year.
Based on this, a female plant worker could expect to earn £41,607 per year.
In contrast, a man in the same role would earn just £33,260 annually — leaving him up to £8,346 worse off over the course of a year.
Meanwhile, female social and human scientists earn 21.5% more, earning £3.81 more per hour than men.
Unsurprisingly, some jobs which are often female-friendly are included in the list, such as PAs and secretaries - where women earn £15.55 per hour, compared to £13.24 for men.
But roles such as counsellors, veterinary nurses, English teachers to foreign language students and train drivers are also on the list.
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IS THERE A MOTHERHOOD PENALTY?
FOR 47 years, it's been illegal to pay men and women different rates for the same job - so why is there still a gender pay gap?
The Sun's Head of Consumer Tara Evans writes: Put it simply - it's being a mum, isn't it?
Women are usually the primary caregivers to children and, therefore more likely to take a career break to have children.
Taking that career break often means not going for a new job, promotion or a pay rise.
Many women who would love to go back to work cannot afford to due to childcare costs.
While having kids is a deeply personal choice, it's also one I think should be rewarded by society too, instead of being penalised by it.
By raising children, you are taking on an unpaid job that helps build a better future, not just for yourself but for everyone.
Jobs where men get paid more
Floorers and wall tilers have the largest recorded gender pay gap, with men earning an average of £14.33 per hour compared to £8.81 for women - a disparity of 38.5%.
Based on previous assumptions, a male floorer or wall tiler could expect to earn £25,178 per year, including bank holidays and the statutory 5.6 weeks of leave.
In contrast, a woman in the same role would earn just £15,479 annually — leaving her up to £9,669 worse off over the course of a year.
Financial managers and directors, along with electrical and electronics technicians, also get paid more.
Men earn more in these roles, with hourly rates of £42.53 and £19.09 respectively, compared to £30.72 and £13.79 for women.
Meanwhile, cybersecurity professionals also see a significant gap (27.2%), with men earning £27.07 per hour and women £19.70.
How to fight the gender pay gap
THERE are ways to fight the gender pay gap, explains money expert Kara Gammell:
Keep tabs on your credit score
A good credit score remains essential whatever your age, as it can help women to secure competitive interest rates for loans, mortgages, credit cards and even your monthly insurance premiums.
For women who are divorced and had a bank account or taken out a loan or mortgage with their ex-spouse, your ex's credit history will still show up on – and could damage – your credit report.
To prevent this financial association leading to higher interest rates or even stopping you from taking out loans, credit cards or mortgages, you must manually request to be financially disassociated from your former partner.
You'll need to provide proof that you're no longer financially linked, for example a letter from your bank showing that your account is now held in your sole name rather than jointly.
You don't have to wait until you're officially separated or divorced to financially disassociate yourself from your ex – you can do it as soon as all joint accounts are closed, and any mortgage or other credit arrangements are no longer held in joint names.
Don't turn down free money for retirement
Research shows that women live longer, but most have smaller pension pots to our male counterparts.
Women can plump up their retirement savings with a little help from your employer.
Increase your workplace pension contributions or you could miss out on what is essentially free money from your employer, as they will add to your pension fund on your behalf.
Afterall, you wouldn't turn down a Christmas bonus, so don't pass up free pension cash from work.
Under auto enrolment, employers are required to put a minimum of 3% of your earnings between £6,240 and £50,270 into your pension.
Tax relief from the Government provides another 1%.
You must put in at least 4% on your own behalf, and if you opt out all the above is lost.
Extra top-ups are frequently available, particularly from large employers.
For example, an employer might automatically match 3% of your earnings as its minimum contribution to your pension.
But it might be willing to make 4%, 5% or 6% in matching contributions if you opt to save a higher proportion of your income.
Get into a savings habit
Instead of getting to the end of each month before thinking about putting some cash into your savings, women should aim to put some money (however small an amount) into your savings when you get paid.
That way, you're building up that rainy day fund for emergencies and you're investing for your future at the same time.
If you're working towards several financial goals at the same time, you might want to consider more than one savings account.
When your money is lumped into a single account, it's tough to know how much more you need to reach a particular goal.
Round ups are a handy feature offered by many banks to help users save money effortlessly.
When you make a purchase with your debit card, the transaction amount is rounded up to the nearest pound and the difference is automatically transferred to a savings account. For example, if you spend £2.75, the round-up feature will add £0.25 to your savings. This small, incremental saving can accumulate over time, making it easier to build a financial cushion without much effort.
Look to the long-term for savings returns
Women tend to be more cautious with their savings and are missing out on higher returns as a result.
According to the Barclays 2024 Equity Gilt Study, over the last 130 years, the probability of shares providing better returns than on cash on any two-year basis was 70%, and this figure rose to 91% over 10 years.
Yet just one in ten women have a Stocks and Shares ISA according to government figures – less than half of the number of men (21% vs 11%).
Women may feel they can't afford to commit to the regular expense, but it's worth knowing you can put aside as little as £25 a month, so it doesn't need to be a major outlay.
In building finishing trades, men earn £15.50 per hour, 25.5% more than women's £11.55.
Public relations and communications directors have a 24.5% gap (£46.15 for men, £34.85 for women).
Rail construction and maintenance operatives show a 24.2% gap (£18.64 for men, £14.12 for women).
Other educational professionals have a 24% gap (£32.32 for men versus £24.56 for women).
Finally, in vehicle body building and repair, men earn £15.83 per hour, which is 23.8% higher than women's £12.06 rate.