NHS basic pay
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- 1. Navigate to Main facts and figures section
- 2. Navigate toNHS staff pay by ethnicity and gender section
- 3. Navigate toNHS medical staff pay by ethnicity and gender section
- 4. Navigate toNHS non-medical staff pay by ethnicity and gender section
- 5. Navigate toNHS non-medical staff pay by ethnicity, gender, and broad staff groups section
- 6. Navigate toGender pay gap among NHS staff in each ethnic group, by type of role section
- 7. Navigate toGender pay gap among NHS non-medical staff in each ethnic group, by broad staff group section
- 8. Navigate to Methodology section
- 9. Navigate to Data sources section
- 10. Navigate to Download the data section
1. Main facts and figures
- across the whole NHS workforce in January 2018, Black men and women had lower average (mean) monthly basic pay than White men and women – Black men were paid 16% less than White men, and Black women were paid 7% less than White women
- across the whole workforce, men and women in the Asian, Mixed and Other ethnic groups had higher average monthly pay than those in the White group; however when comparing staff in similar roles, White staff had higher average pay than those in all other ethnic groups (except among female infrastructure support staff, where Mixed ethnicity staff had the highest average pay)
- within both medical roles (doctors in hospitals and community health services) and non-medical roles, White men and women had the highest average monthly basic pay out of all ethnic groups – the ethnicity pay gap was largest for Black women in medical roles and Black men in non-medical roles, with both groups being paid 16% less than their White counterparts
- men and women from the Asian, Black, Mixed and Other ethnic groups working in the 4 non-medical staff groups had lower average monthly basic pay than their White counterparts (except for women from the Mixed and Asian ethnic groups in infrastructure support roles) – the largest ethnicity pay gap was seen among managers and senior managers, where Black men earned 20% less than White men
- in the NHS workforce as a whole, and in both medical and non-medical roles, women had lower average monthly basic pay than men – this pattern was seen in most ethnic groups, with the main exception being Black non-medical staff, where women were paid 3% more than men
- out of the 4 non-medical staff groups, the gender pay gap was largest among managers and senior managers in the Asian ethnic group, where women were paid 11% less than men on average
- in general, pay gaps between ethnic groups, and between men and women in the same ethnic group, were smaller in non-medical roles than in the medical roles
Things you need to know
This data includes all staff directly employed by the NHS in foundation trusts, clinical commissioning groups, and central and support organisations in England.
The data doesn’t include:
- staff working in primary care, like dentists in dental practices and GPs
- agency staff and contractors
Two NHS foundation trusts don’t use the Electronic Staff Record, the NHS’s main human resources and payroll system, and their data isn’t included here.
The figures shown here are based on a single month’s data. NHS staff may have been paid a different amount in that month compared with other months of the year, and the month used may not be representative of staff’s usual monthly basic pay.
This data is based on mean basic pay, rather than median. The mean was worked out by adding all staff’s full time equivalent (FTE) pay, and dividing the total by the number of staff. If the median had been used, it is likely that the pay gaps would be smaller as the median is less affected by extreme values. Median basic pay can be calculated using NHS Digital’s analysis tool.
Although this data shows average monthly basic pay for the medical workforce as a whole, doctors’ pay varies substantially by grade. For example, junior doctors in foundation year 1 have a basic pay of £26,614 a year, compared with £76,761 to £103,490 a year for consultants.
Data on the NHS workforce shows that the number and percentage of staff in each pay grade and type of role (medical or non-medical) varies by the different ethnic groups. An ethnic group with a higher percentage of staff in more highly-paid NHS roles (for example, medical roles) or with a higher percentage of staff on more senior pay grades will have a higher average pay than a group with more staff in junior or less highly-paid roles.
For example, this data shows that staff in the Asian, Mixed and Other ethnic groups had a higher average monthly basic pay than White staff when the whole NHS workforce is considered. However, the opposite was found when comparing staff within both medical roles and non-medical roles, with White staff paid more than staff in the Asian, Mixed and Other ethnic groups. This arises from variations in the percentage of staff at higher paid grades within the different ethnic groups in both medical and non-medical roles.
Ethnicity was not known for 4.7% of NHS staff. Staff whose ethnicity wasn’t known are shown in the category ‘Unknown’ in the tables.
What the data measures
This data shows the average (mean) monthly basic pay per for NHS staff working in NHS trusts, clinical commissioning groups, and central and support organisations in England.
The data is broken down by ethnicity, gender, type of role (medical or non-medical), and by the 4 non-medical broad staff groups.
Data on pay has been calculated using each staff member’s full-time equivalent (FTE) salary. For example, if someone works 2.5 days per week and earns £12,000, their FTE salary is £24,000.
Basic pay excludes overtime, bonuses, extra pay for working unsocial hours, and geographic allowances like London weighting. Other payments like expenses, sick pay and parental leave pay are not included.
The data shown here looks first at differences between ethnic groups in the average basic monthly pay received by male and female NHS staff, and an ethnicity pay gap is reported for each ethnic group relative to White men and women. The data then focuses on the gender pay gap and how that differs between the different ethnic groups.
An ethnicity pay gap is calculated to show how much the pay of each ethnic group differs to that of the White group, for both men and women. It is calculated by subtracting the pay of each ethnic group from the pay of the White ethnic group, then dividing by the pay of the White ethnic group. Because it is known that there are differences in pay between men and women, the ethnicity pay gap has been calculated for men and women separately.
The ethnicity pay gap of 16% which is reported for Black female doctors means that Black female doctors were paid 16% less than White female doctors. An ethnicity pay gap that is a negative percentage shows that the ethnic group being shown is paid more than the White group – for example, the ethnicity pay gap of -10% for Asian female staff in the workforce overall means that Asian female staff were paid 10% more than White female staff.
The gender pay gap shows how much the pay of women differs to that of men. It is calculated by subtracting the pay of women from the pay of men, then dividing by the pay of men. As an example, among infrastructure support staff, a gender pay gap of 2% for staff with Mixed ethnicity means that, on average, female staff in this group were paid 2% less than their male colleagues in the same staff and ethnic group. A gender pay gap that is a negative percentage indicates that women were paid more than men – for example, a gender pay gap of -3% for Black infrastructure support staff means that female Black staff were paid on average 3% more than their Black male colleagues.
‘Medical’ staff are doctors working for hospitals and community health services.
‘Non-medical’ staff are split into the following broad staff groups:
- professionally qualified non-medical staff – nurses and health visitors, ambulance staff, midwives, and scientific, therapeutic and technical staff
- support to clinical staff – staff whose role is to support either doctors and nurses, ambulance staff, or scientific, therapeutic and technical staff
- managers and senior managers
- infrastructure support – staff working in hotel, property and estates, and central functions
Most non-medical staff are on the NHS Agenda for Change pay scale. Medical staff are on a separate pay scale for doctors.
The ethnic categories used in this data
The data uses the broad ethnic categories from the 2011 Census:
- Asian/Asian British
- Black/African/ Caribbean/Black British
- Mixed/Multiple ethnicities
- White
- Other
2. NHS staff pay by ethnicity and gender
| Average (mean) monthly basic pay per FTE (£) | Ethnicity pay gap, relative to White (%) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | Average (mean) monthly basic pay per FTE (£) Female | Average (mean) monthly basic pay per FTE (£) Male | Ethnicity pay gap, relative to White (%) Female | Ethnicity pay gap, relative to White (%) Male |
| All | 2,423 | 3,157 | N/A* | N/A* |
| Asian | 2,637 | 3,764 | -10 | -24 |
| Black | 2,242 | 2,551 | 7 | 16 |
| Mixed | 2,407 | 3,145 | 0 | -4 |
| White | 2,407 | 3,034 | N/A* | N/A* |
| Other | 2,590 | 3,691 | -8 | -22 |
| Unknown | 2,491 | 3,369 | -4 | -11 |
Download table data for ‘NHS staff pay by ethnicity and gender’ (CSV) Source data for ‘NHS staff pay by ethnicity and gender’ (CSV)
Summary of NHS basic pay NHS staff pay by ethnicity and gender Summary
This data shows that:
- overall, in January 2018, the average (mean) monthly basic pay for NHS staff was £2,423 for women and £3,157 for men
- on average, staff from the Asian ethnic group had the highest monthly basic pay for both men and women, at £3,764 for men and £2,637 for women; Black staff had the lowest monthly basic pay, at £2,551 for men and £2,242 for women
- men and women in the Asian and Other ethnic groups, and men in the Mixed group, had higher basic pay on average than those in the White group
- only staff in the Black ethnic group had lower monthly basic pay than White staff – Black men were paid 16% less than White men, and Black women were paid 7% less than White women
3. NHS medical staff pay by ethnicity and gender
| Average (mean) monthly basic pay per FTE (£) | Ethnicity pay gap, relative to White (%) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | Average (mean) monthly basic pay per FTE (£) Female | Average (mean) monthly basic pay per FTE (£) Male | Ethnicity pay gap, relative to White (%) Female | Ethnicity pay gap, relative to White (%) Male |
| All | 4,897 | 5,703 | N/A* | N/A* |
| Asian | 4,760 | 5,636 | 7 | 5 |
| Black | 4,303 | 5,142 | 16 | 13 |
| Mixed | 4,387 | 5,017 | 14 | 15 |
| White | 5,104 | 5,934 | N/A* | N/A* |
| Other | 4,652 | 5,564 | 9 | 6 |
| Unknown | 4,401 | 5,145 | 14 | 13 |
Download table data for ‘NHS medical staff pay by ethnicity and gender’ (CSV) Source data for ‘NHS medical staff pay by ethnicity and gender’ (CSV)
Summary of NHS basic pay NHS medical staff pay by ethnicity and gender Summary
This data shows that:
- overall, in January 2018, the average (mean) monthly basic pay for NHS medical staff (doctors working for hospitals and community health services) was £4,897 for women and £5,703 for men
- average monthly basic pay ranged from £5,017 among male doctors from the Mixed group to £5,934 among White male doctors; and from £4,303 among Black female doctors to £5,104 among White female doctors
- female doctors from the Asian, Black, Mixed and Other ethnic groups were paid between 7% and 16% less than White female doctors, and male doctors from the same ethnic groups were paid between 5% and 15% less than White male doctors
- in the Asian, Black and Other ethnic groups, the pay gap compared with White doctors was wider for female doctors than for male doctors
4. NHS non-medical staff pay by ethnicity and gender
| Average (mean) monthly basic pay per FTE (£) | Ethnicity pay gap, relative to White (%) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | Average (mean) monthly basic pay per FTE (£) Female | Average (mean) monthly basic pay per FTE (£) Male | Ethnicity pay gap, relative to White (%) Female | Ethnicity pay gap, relative to White (%) Male |
| All | 2,276 | 2,429 | N/A* | N/A* |
| Asian | 2,209 | 2,251 | 4 | 9 |
| Black | 2,160 | 2,098 | 6 | 16 |
| Mixed | 2,171 | 2,223 | 5 | 10 |
| White | 2,293 | 2,483 | N/A* | N/A* |
| Other | 2,252 | 2,245 | 2 | 10 |
| Unknown | 2,265 | 2,566 | 1 | -3 |
Download table data for ‘NHS non-medical staff pay by ethnicity and gender’ (CSV) Source data for ‘NHS non-medical staff pay by ethnicity and gender’ (CSV)
Summary of NHS basic pay NHS non-medical staff pay by ethnicity and gender Summary
This data shows that:
- overall, in January 2018, the average (mean) monthly basic pay for NHS staff in non-medical roles (which includes nurses, midwives, and support to clinical staff) was £2,276 for women and £2,429 for men
- White men had the highest average monthly basic pay of all non-medical staff (where ethnicity was known), at £2,483, and Black men had the lowest, at £2,098
- differences in average monthly basic pay between ethnic groups were smaller among women than men; but White women still had the highest basic pay of all women, at £2,293, and Black women had the lowest, at £2,160
- among non-medical staff, men from the Asian, Black, Mixed and Other ethnic groups were paid between 9% and 16% less than their White counterparts, and women were paid between 2% and 6% less than their White counterparts
- for both women and men, Black non-medical staff had the largest pay gap compared to White non-medical staff (6% for women, 16% for men)
5. NHS non-medical staff pay by ethnicity, gender, and broad staff groups
| Professionally qualified non-medical | Support to clinical staff | Managers and senior managers | Infrastructure support | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | Professionally qualified non-medical Female | Professionally qualified non-medical Male | Support to clinical staff Female | Support to clinical staff Male | Managers and senior managers Female | Managers and senior managers Male | Infrastructure support Female | Infrastructure support Male |
| Average (mean) monthly basic pay per FTE (£) | ||||||||
| All | 2,709 | 2,759 | 1,603 | 1,603 | 4,679 | 5,198 | 1,908 | 2,064 |
| Asian | 2,540 | 2,634 | 1,551 | 1,556 | 4,241 | 4,790 | 1,912 | 2,025 |
| Black | 2,538 | 2,592 | 1,565 | 1,553 | 4,218 | 4,187 | 1,861 | 1,875 |
| Mixed | 2,575 | 2,672 | 1,566 | 1,585 | 4,341 | 4,772 | 1,950 | 1,984 |
| White | 2,748 | 2,799 | 1,610 | 1,615 | 4,698 | 5,218 | 1,909 | 2,080 |
| Other | 2,624 | 2,734 | 1,548 | 1,561 | 4,415 | 4,579 | 1,823 | 1,807 |
| Unknown | 2,624 | 2,698 | 1,602 | 1,646 | 5,111 | 5,903 | 1,933 | 2,171 |
| Ethnicity pay gap, relative to White (%) | ||||||||
| All - | N/A* | N/A* | N/A* | N/A* | N/A* | N/A* | N/A* | N/A* |
| Asian - | 8 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 10 | 8 | 0 | 3 |
| Black - | 8 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 10 | 20 | 2 | 10 |
| Mixed - | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 9 | -2 | 5 |
| White - | N/A* | N/A* | N/A* | N/A* | N/A* | N/A* | N/A* | N/A* |
| Other - | 5 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 6 | 12 | 4 | 13 |
| Unknown - | 5 | 4 | 1 | -2 | -9 | -13 | -1 | -4 |
Download table data for ‘NHS non-medical staff pay by ethnicity, gender, and broad staff groups’ (CSV) Source data for ‘NHS non-medical staff pay by ethnicity, gender, and broad staff groups’ (CSV)
Summary of NHS basic pay NHS non-medical staff pay by ethnicity, gender, and broad staff groups Summary
This data shows that:
- overall, in January 2018, the average (mean) basic pay for non-medical staff varied according to the type of role, with managers and senior managers on average earning the most (£5,198 for men and £4,679 for women) and support to clinical staff the least (£1,603 for both men and women)
- in most cases, White staff were the highest paid out of all ethnic groups when comparing non-medical staff in similar roles – the exceptions were for female infrastructure support staff, where those from the Mixed ethnic group were paid 2% more than their White counterparts and those from the Asian group were paid a similar amount
- the ethnicity pay gap was generally larger among managers and senior managers compared with other types of non-medical role
- the largest ethnicity pay gap was found among male managers and senior managers, where Black men were paid 20% less than White men (£4,187 for Black men, compared with £5,218 for White men)
6. Gender pay gap among NHS staff in each ethnic group, by type of role
| All staff average monthly basic pay | Medical staff average monthly basic pay | Non-medical staff average monthly basic pay | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | All staff average monthly basic pay Female (£) | All staff average monthly basic pay Male (£) | All staff average monthly basic pay Gender pay gap (%) | Medical staff average monthly basic pay Female (£) | Medical staff average monthly basic pay Male (£) | Medical staff average monthly basic pay Gender pay gap (%) | Non-medical staff average monthly basic pay Female (£) | Non-medical staff average monthly basic pay Male (£) | Non-medical staff average monthly basic pay Gender pay gap (%) |
| All | 2,423 | 3,157 | 23 | 4,897 | 5,703 | 14 | 2,276 | 2,429 | 6 |
| Asian | 2,637 | 3,764 | 30 | 4,760 | 5,636 | 16 | 2,209 | 2,251 | 2 |
| Black | 2,242 | 2,551 | 12 | 4,303 | 5,142 | 16 | 2,160 | 2,098 | -3 |
| Mixed | 2,407 | 3,145 | 23 | 4,387 | 5,017 | 13 | 2,171 | 2,223 | 2 |
| White | 2,407 | 3,034 | 21 | 5,104 | 5,934 | 14 | 2,293 | 2,483 | 8 |
| Other | 2,590 | 3,691 | 30 | 4,652 | 5,564 | 16 | 2,252 | 2,245 | 0 |
| Unknown | 2,491 | 3,369 | 26 | 4,401 | 5,145 | 14 | 2,265 | 2,566 | 12 |
Download table data for ‘Gender pay gap among NHS staff in each ethnic group, by type of role’ (CSV) Source data for ‘Gender pay gap among NHS staff in each ethnic group, by type of role’ (CSV)
Summary of NHS basic pay Gender pay gap among NHS staff in each ethnic group, by type of role Summary
This data shows that:
- overall, in January 2018, the average (mean) monthly basic pay for all NHS staff was £2,423 for women and £3,157 for men; it was higher amongst medical staff (£4,897 for women and £5,703 for men) than non-medical staff (£2,276 for women and £2,429 for men)
- among medical staff, women earned less in basic pay on average than men in every ethnic group
- among non-medical staff, women earned less in basic pay than men in the Asian, Mixed, and White groups, but in the Black group they were paid 3% more than men on average, and in the Other ethnic group they were paid a similar amount to men
- the overall gender pay gap was largest in the Asian and Other ethnic groups – in both groups, women were paid on average 30% less than men
- the gender pay gap was larger among medical staff (ranging from 13% to 16%) than among non-medical staff (ranging from -3% to 8%) for staff whose ethnicity was known
- among non-medical staff, the largest gender pay gap was found in the White ethnic group, where women earned on average 8% less than men
7. Gender pay gap among NHS non-medical staff in each ethnic group, by broad staff group
| Professionally qualified non-medical | Support to clinical staff | Managers and senior managers | Infrastructure support | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | Professionally qualified non-medical Female (£) | Professionally qualified non-medical Male (£) | Professionally qualified non-medical Gender pay gap (%) | Support to clinical staff Female (£) | Support to clinical staff Male (£) | Support to clinical staff Gender pay gap (%) | Managers and senior managers Female (£) | Managers and senior managers Male (£) | Managers and senior managers Gender pay gap (%) | Infrastructure support Female (£) | Infrastructure support Male (£) | Infrastructure support Gender pay gap (%) |
| All | 2,709 | 2,759 | 2 | 1,603 | 1,603 | 0 | 4,679 | 5,198 | 10 | 1,908 | 2,064 | 8 |
| Asian | 2,540 | 2,634 | 4 | 1,551 | 1,556 | 0 | 4,241 | 4,790 | 11 | 1,912 | 2,025 | 6 |
| Black | 2,538 | 2,592 | 2 | 1,565 | 1,553 | -1 | 4,218 | 4,187 | -1 | 1,861 | 1,875 | 1 |
| Mixed | 2,575 | 2,672 | 4 | 1,566 | 1,585 | 1 | 4,341 | 4,772 | 9 | 1,950 | 1,984 | 2 |
| White | 2,748 | 2,799 | 2 | 1,610 | 1,615 | 0 | 4,698 | 5,218 | 10 | 1,909 | 2,080 | 8 |
| Other | 2,624 | 2,734 | 4 | 1,548 | 1,561 | 1 | 4,415 | 4,579 | 4 | 1,823 | 1,807 | -1 |
| Unknown | 2,624 | 2,698 | 3 | 1,602 | 1,646 | 3 | 5,111 | 5,903 | 13 | 1,933 | 2,171 | 11 |
Download table data for ‘Gender pay gap among NHS non-medical staff in each ethnic group, by broad staff group’ (CSV) Source data for ‘Gender pay gap among NHS non-medical staff in each ethnic group, by broad staff group’ (CSV)
Summary of NHS basic pay Gender pay gap among NHS non-medical staff in each ethnic group, by broad staff group Summary
This data shows that:
- overall, amongst non-medical staff, managers and senior managers had the highest average (mean) monthly basic pay in January 2018, at £4,679 for women and £5,198 for men; support to clinical staff had the lowest, at £1,603 for both men and women
- in all ethnic groups, men and women in roles supporting clinical staff were paid similar amounts
- in the other 3 broad staff groups, women were in most cases paid less than men; the 2 exceptions were among Black managers and senior managers, and infrastructure support staff from the Other ethnic group, where women were paid 1% more than men in each case
- the gender pay gap was largest amongst managers and senior managers, where women were paid on average 10% less than men; the gap was largest in the Asian ethnic group, where women were paid 11% less than men
8. Methodology
Data provided here is based on pay data for January 2018 collected from NHS trusts and Foundation Trusts, clinical commissioning groups, and central and support organisations using the Electronic Staff Record (ESR), the NHS’s main human resources and payroll system.
Since 2008, the system has contained staff records for over 99% of staff employed directly by the NHS in England. NHS foundation trusts are not required to use the ESR. Two of these do not, and their data is not included here.
NHS staff report their own ethnicity. Ethnicity was not known for 4.7% of NHS staff.
The data is based on a single month, January 2018, so that more staff could be included. If the data has been based on annual earnings, only staff who worked for the entire year could have been included.
Basic pay here does not include expenses, sick pay and parental leave pay, and additional pay for overtime, unsocial hours, bonuses, and geographic allowances. Excluding geographical allowances when comparing staff pay should facilitate like-for-like comparisons between ethnic groups, as staff in some ethnic groups may be more likely to be eligible for such allowances due to their location.
The pay of part-time staff has been adjusted as if they were working full time.
Earnings that fell outside of the expected range, for example due to starting a job late in the month, were removed to avoid distorting the figures.
You can find additional analysis of the data by grade and detailed staff group. This publication also provides data on total earnings, which includes other payments on top of basic pay such as overtime, unsocial hours and bonuses (but not geographic allowances).
Suppression rules and disclosure control
A small amount of data may have been suppressed if its publication could lead to individual NHS staff members being identified.
Rounding
All figures are rounded to the nearest whole number. You can see figures rounded to 4 decimal places if you download the data.
Related publications
http://digital.nhs.uk/pubs/hchsworkjun18
9. Data sources
Source
NHS Workforce Statistics January 2018
Type of data
Administrative data
Type of statistic
Official statistics
Publisher
NHS Digital
Publication frequency
Monthly
Purpose of data source
The data is extracted from NHS human resource and payroll systems. The purpose of collecting ethnicity data through these systems is to monitor equality and diversity across the NHS workforce.
10. Download the data
This file contains the following: ethnicity, gender, type of role, broad (non-medical) staff group, mean monthly basic pay per full time equivalent (FTE), ethnicity pay gap relative to White by gender, gender pay gap relative to male by ethnicity