Men working in the Central Bank were paid 5.9 per cent more than their women colleagues last year on average, as the gap widened by two percentage points, according to a new gender pay gap report.
The gender pay gap is the difference in the average hourly wage of all men and all women in an organisation. It does not imply an absence of equal pay for equal work, which is a legal requirement in Ireland. Instead, it is typically a result of unequal gender representation at different organisational levels.
The Central Bank said its gender pay gap stood at 5.9 per cent as of June 30th in favour of male employees, which is up from 3.9 per cent a year earlier – when the national average was 11.2 per cent.
The institution said that changes in gender distribution at the mid-to-senior levels contributed to a widening of the gap. Men accounted for almost 55 per cent of such positions as of June.
“Other factors that influence our gender pay gap include length of service and time at grade,” it said.
However, the median pay gap was 0.8 per cent in favour of male employees across its workforce of 2,300. Gender distribution between male and female employees is 50.8 per cent male, 49.2 per cent female.
The Gender Pay Gap Information Act was signed into Irish law in 2021 and began having practical effect in 2022 for employers with more than 250 employees. In 2024 this advanced to employers with more than 150 employees, and in 2025 this will apply to employers with more than 50 employees.
The latest annual disclosure from the Central Bank came as it named Mary-Elizabeth McMunn as the next deputy governor overseeing financial regulation from January. Ms McMunn, currently the director of banking, payments and credit unions at the organisation, will succeed Sharon Donnery, who is taking up a senior role at the European Central Bank in Frankfurt.
[ Progress might be slow but the gender pay gap is shrinkingOpens in new window ]
Ms McMunn, who holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from University College Dublin and masters in investment and treasury from Dublin City University, joined the central bank in 1997 and has worked in banking, insurance, markets supervision and supervisory risk.
“Mary-Elizabeth brings a wealth of experience in financial regulation and extensive leadership experience allied with a deep knowledge of the financial system and of the regulatory environment in Europe,” said Central Bank governor Gabriel Makhlouf.
The appointment means that women will continue to hold two of the three deputy governorship positions in the Central Bank and three of the top four roles within the organisation, including chief operations officer Marcella Flood.
Minister for Finance Jack Chambers welcomed Ms McMunn’s promotion, noting that it followed an extensive selection process.
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