Employers to be legally required to publish salary ranges in job adverts
The government plans to make employers publish salary ranges in job adverts, and Prime Minister Andy Burnham is urging firms to do so voluntarily before the law changes.
How it was covered
- Sky News carried 53% of the airtime and concentrated on jobseeker frustration, pay statistics and the policy's political popularity.
- ITV concentrated on the legal requirement, consultation support and business and political reaction.
- BBC One concentrated on youth unemployment, the PM's rationale and criticism of government policy.
- BBC News, BBC Two, Channel 4 and GB News: not found in tracked broadcasts.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story. Facts only one channel reported are attributed to it.
The government has announced plans to require employers to include salary ranges in job adverts. Prime Minister Andy Burnham said applicants should know what a job pays before spending time applying. He urged employers to publish salaries now rather than wait for legislation. Channel 5 reported that businesses have been told they should include salaries from now onwards and that the change will soon become law.
The available figures measure different things. Sky News said 41% of employers regularly advertise any kind of salary, even within a broad range, and 27% never do so. It also said only 18% publish a specific salary target. ITV reported that around half of job adverts currently carry pay details, a share that has fallen in recent years. Research has previously found that less than half of employers always include salary information.
The government says the change will expose what it calls unjustified differences in pay. It is presenting the measure as a small step to help young people into work and to close the gender pay gap. ITV reported that Burnham was meeting apprentices in Wiltshire as he made the case. Sky News reported that the Fawcett Society welcomed the move as a significant step, saying it would give employees a baseline for assessing whether colleagues are paid fairly.
Business groups have said the details will matter. ITV reported that they want employers to be able to advertise a salary range rather than one specific figure. Some employers told Sky News that setting pay is complicated by differences in experience and potential. The Conservatives said it should be for businesses, not the government, to decide what appears in job adverts, ITV reported. Amanda, Sky News political correspondent, said the policy could be one of Andy Burnham's most popular. She noted that the form of the legislation and the government's enforcement powers are not yet known.
In an interview with BBC One West, Simon Jack, the BBC One West business editor, pressed Burnham on youth unemployment. BBC One West reported that Burnham believes the process can be demoralising and unfair. It also reported that around a million young people are not in education, employment or training. BBC One West reported that critics blame government policy, including increases in the national living wage and national minimum wage, extra national insurance costs and new employment rights, for making younger workers more expensive and riskier to hire. Burnham conceded that the welfare bill is not expected to fall during this parliament, ahead of an expected report from Alan Milburn.
Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.
| Claim |  |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Widely reported · 3 or more of 4 channels | ||||
| The government announced plans to require employers to publish salaries on job adverts. | ||||
| Reported by a few · 2 channels | ||||
| Around one million people are not in education, employment or training. | Not reported by Channel 5 | Not reported by ITV | ||
| Reported figures indicated that 41% of employers always publish a salary range and 18% publish a specific salary target. | Not reported by BBC One | Not reported by ITV | ||
| Only on one channel | ||||
| Burnham said he did not expect the welfare bill to start falling during this parliament. | Not reported by Channel 5 | Not reported by ITV | Not reported by Sky News | |
| Business groups favour advertising salary ranges rather than a single specific salary. | Not reported by Channel 5 | Not reported by BBC One | Not reported by Sky News | |
| Critics argued that youth unemployment is partly caused by government wage and tax rises and new employment rights. | Not reported by Channel 5 | Not reported by ITV | Not reported by Sky News | |
| The Conservatives said businesses, not the government, should decide what appears in job adverts. | Not reported by Channel 5 | Not reported by BBC One | Not reported by Sky News | |
| The Fawcett Society described the plan as a positive step for women's rights at work. | Not reported by Channel 5 | Not reported by BBC One | Not reported by ITV | |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
Sky News treated the plan as a practical workplace change and a likely popular political measure. Its morning and afternoon reports dwelt on how little pay information jobseekers get, the gender pay case made by the Fawcett Society, business concerns and the absence of detail on enforcement.
- “the government's announced plans to force employers to publish salaries”
- “only 41% of employers regularly advertise any kind of salary even within quite a broad range and 27% Never do so.”
- “this could be one of Andy Burnham's most popular policies yet”
Channel 5 reduced the story to a single short bulletin item. It reported the government's advice to employers, Andy Burnham's reason for the change and the weak existing salary disclosure, without analysis or reaction.
- “businesses have been told they should include salaries on job adverts from now onwards”
- “Prime Minister Andy Burnham says people should know what a job pays before they spend time applying”
- “it will soon become law”
BBC One West gave the policy a political and economic frame through an interview with Andy Burnham. Simon Jack examined the youth unemployment rationale, the criticism that government wage and employment policies have made young workers costlier, and the coming welfare reform report from Alan Milburn.
- “I don't think it is fair that an employer gonna holds all the cards.”
- “We will change the law, but we'd appeal to all employers to do it voluntarily before that law change comes in”
- “They're around a million people not in education employment or training”
ITV1 gave the plan a detailed Westminster treatment across lunchtime and evening bulletins. Harry Horton set out the legal requirement, Burnham's visit to apprentices in Wiltshire, the 94% consultation support, business demands for salary ranges and the Conservative response.
- “Employers will be legally required to include salary information in job adverts under new government plans.”
- “Andy Burnham believes that the current system is weighted against the applicant.”
- “94% of respondents say they're in favour of greater transparency on job adverts.”
Who was on air
People and organisations each channel put on air while covering this story. Channels' own presenters and reporters are not listed. Names as transcribed, and the list can miss people.
- 13:14 GMT
Andy Burnham, the prime minister
BBC News at One including · Fri 6 Nov
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.