Women make up more than half of Citigroup's workforce, but only 37percent of employees at the assistant VP level through the managingdirector level. (Image: Shutterstock)

Citigroup Inc. offered an uncharacteristically blunt assessmentof the pay gap between men and women in its globalworkforce Wednesday, revealing that female employees earn 29percent less than men do.

The disclosure — a comparison of median total compensation —offers a more complete picture of pay, compared withthe figures Citigroup and other big banks released last year underpressure from shareholders in the U.S. and regulators in theU.K.

The bank also reported that, among its U.S. employees, people of color earn 7 percent less than theirwhite colleagues.

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“The numbers are difficult,” said Sara Wechter, Citigroup'sglobal head of human resources. “We should obviously be at 100percent parity, and that's what we're striving for.”

The gap reflects a company that's mostly male at the highestlevels. Women make up more than half of Citigroup's workforce, butonly 37 percent of employees at the assistant VP level through themanaging director level. Over the years, banks have lost blackexecutives. In 2017, Citigroup saw a drop in black bankers for theeighth consecutive year. Black workers only make up 1.8 percent ofexecutive and senior manager positions, according to data compiledby Bloomberg.

The new disclosure stands in contrast to numbers Citigroupreleased last year. In accordance with a new U.K. law, the bankreported that among its U.K. employees, women earned 44 percentless than men, a gap that widened to 67 percent when bonuses wereincluded.

Around the same time, and under pressure from Arjuna Capital,Citigroup and several other big U.S. banks reported a differentmeasure for U.S. employees. Instead of comparing the median pay formen and women, the banks “adjusted'' the pay gap to account for jobtitle, seniority, education and other factors that affectcompensation. All the banks, including Citigroup, reported thatafter adjustments, there was almost no pay gap between men andwomen.

“As companies put out these 'equal pay for equal work' numbers,there's been a lot of skepticism,” says Natasha Lamb, a managingpartner at Arjuna Capital. In November, Arjuna filed a shareholderproposal asking Citigroup to report the more straightforwardcomparison of men's and women's median earnings for its entire200,000-person workforce — not just for U.K. employees.

“If we're only dealing with statistically adjusted numbers, thenwe're only dealing with half the problem,” Lamb said. “We need morewomen in higher-paid positions and leadership.”

Wechter said the new disclosure is part of the company'scommitment to transparency and to improving diversity. Last summer,Citigroup published a plan to improve gender balance and racialrepresentation in the next three years.

Arjuna is withdrawing its resolution. “This sets the stage forothers to step up,” Lamb said. “It's a badge of honor to bedisclosing at this level, rather than a point of criticism. We allknow the gaps are there.”

Read more:

• 4 questions about equal pay every employer shouldbe asking
• Black women's equal pay day highlights massive paygap
• Here's how you can proactively address gender payinequity

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