pay gap

BBC Boss Responds to Open Letter, Says Closing Pay Gap Will Be ‘Accelerated’

Photo: Barcroft Media via Getty Images

BBC director general Tony Hall has responded to the open letter from the network’s female hosts asking for equal pay. After more than 40 staffers called upon the BBC to pay men and women equally for equal work, Hall said that closing the wage gap was “a personal priority over the last four years,” and that the BBC’s efforts would be “accelerated.” Per Deadline: “I have committed the BBC to closing the gap by 2020 and if we can get there earlier then we will,” he wrote. “We are not, however, making a standing start. Work is already well underway across the organisation to help achieve this. There will be wider consultation meetings over the next two months so we can accelerate further change in the autumn.” The controversy started after the BBC released a list of presenters making over £150,000; of the 96 employees earning more than £150,000, only 34 were women. “This is an opportunity for those of us with strong and loud voices to use them on behalf of all, and for an organisation that had to be pushed into transparency to do the right thing,” female BBC stars wrote in their letter.

BBC Boss Says Pay-Gap-Closing Efforts Will Be Accelerated