Gen Z reverse the gender pay gap

UK – A subtle but significant shift is emerging among young men and women in the UK. New research from the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) reveals that for Gen Z in full-time work aged 16–24, the gender pay gap has reversed, with women now slightly out-earning men. While this is expected to flip later in life due to the ‘motherhood penalty’ and male over-representation in high-paying sectors, experts suggest this isn’t the full story.

The CSJ’s Lost Boys report links the reversal to long-term declines in male educational performance and job opportunities in traditional industries. Women now outperform men at every education stage, hold a slim majority of Oxbridge places and increasingly enter high-earning fields such as law, medicine and dentistry. Meanwhile, Gen Z boys are more likely to be suspended from school, excluded or disengaged from both work and education – a widening social and economic divide.

We first pointed to the growing divergence between Gen Z men and women in our Gen Z Now and Next report. In Decoding Masculinity, we unpacked the implications of young men falling behind and what brands can do to provide new routes forward for men at risk of radicalisation.