{"id":111367,"date":"2018-01-08T14:46:12","date_gmt":"2018-01-08T14:46:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/?p=111367"},"modified":"2018-01-08T14:46:12","modified_gmt":"2018-01-08T14:46:12","slug":"bbcs-china-editor-steps-down-due-to-pay-inequality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/blog\/bbcs-china-editor-steps-down-due-to-pay-inequality\/","title":{"rendered":"BBC\u2019s China Editor steps down due to pay inequality"},"content":{"rendered":"

Carrie Gracie has stepped down from her role as China editor at the BBC after accusing the public broadcaster of \u2018breaking equality law\u2019 and \u2018resisting pressure for a fair and transparent pay structure\u2019.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In an open letter to the \u2018BBC Audience\u2019, published on her blog<\/a>, Gracie says:<\/p>\n

\u2018In thirty years at the BBC, I have never sought to make myself the story and never publicly criticised the organisation I love. I am not asking for more money. I believe I am very well paid already \u2013 especially as someone working for a publicly funded organisation. I simply want the BBC to abide by the law and value men and women equally.<\/p>\n

\u2018On pay, the BBC is not living up to its stated values of trust, honesty and accountability. Salary disclosures the BBC was forced to make six months ago revealed not only unacceptably high pay for top presenters and managers but also an indefensible pay gap between men and women doing equal work. These revelations damaged the trust of BBC staff. For the first time, women saw hard evidence of what they\u2019d long suspected, that they are not being valued equally.<\/p>\n

\u2018Many have since sought pay equality through internal negotiation but managers still deny there is a problem. This bunker mentality is likely to end in a disastrous legal defeat for the BBC and an exodus of female talent at every level.\u2019<\/p>\n

Gracie goes on to describe how she took her dream role on the understanding that she was to be paid equally with her male peers. When the BBC released details of top-earning \u2018stars\u2019, Gracie discovered the two male international editors \u2013 US editor John Sopel and Middle East editor Jeremy Bowen \u2013 earned at least 50% more.<\/p>\n

After learning of the pay disparity, Gracie asked her bosses to make all the international editors\u2019 pay equal. She was, instead, offered a pay rise that, \u2018remained far short of equality\u2019. Gracie therefore quit her role and will be returning to her former post in the newsroom where she \u2018expects to be paid equally\u2019.<\/p>\n

The story has made waves online, not least because Gracie was a presenter on the Today programme this morning. Due to BBC rules on impartiality, she was unable to discuss the story herself so it was covered in the news bulletins and, as PRWeek calls it<\/a>, \u2018a slightly ill-tempered interview between Humphrys and Mariella Frostrup\u2019.<\/p>\n

There has been support<\/a> from all sections of the press, as well as MPs from multiple parties. On Twitter, the hashtag #IstandwithCarrie trended this morning, and was dominated by BBC staff:<\/p>\n

\n

.@BBCCarrie<\/a> Gracie is brave and brilliant. Not sure what is so hard to understand about #equalpay<\/a> for equal work. #IstandwithCarrie<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Sarah Montague (@Sarah_Montague) January 7, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n